The Light of Day: A FROZEN Epic
by GeorgeGlass999
Summary: Seven princes come to the kingdom to seek Elsa's hand as Prince-Consort. But not all in attendance are what they seem, and behind the ball gowns and canapés lurks a plot that could destroy Arendelle—and its Queen.
1. Chapter 1: The Captain

The Light of Day: A _Frozen_ Epic  
by George Glass

Summary: Seven princes come to the kingdom to seek Elsa's hand as Prince-Consort. But not all in attendance are what they seem, and behind the ball gowns and canapés lurks a plot that could destroy Arendelle—and its Queen.

Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of _Frozen_ or its characters. I made no money from writing this story.

Note: This story is set in a fantasy world and is not intended to depict realistically any place, culture, or time period.

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Chapter 1: The Captain

"This is really nice," said Anna before taking a sip of her hot cider. She and Elsa were in the sitting room of the castle's royal quarters. Rain was falling heavily outside, and occasional flashes of lightning momentarily illuminated the room, which otherwise was lit only by the fire that was burning down to embers in the stone hearth.

"I'm sorry I had to cancel our dinner plans," Elsa said. "There were some urgent matters that I needed to discuss with the Foreign Minister, and that was the only time slot I had."

"This is better, anyway," Anna said, pushing her stockinged feet a little closer to the warmth of the fire. "But it's amazing—you've only been queen for nine months, and you sound like you've been doing it your whole life."

"It doesn't feel that way, though," said Elsa. "I still have a lot to learn. But I keep having to learn by doing, what with the troubles we've had from all the rain this season, and the trade conference coming up, and dealing with the aftermath of the war with Weselton…"

"It was hardly a war. Their troops landed, you froze them up to their knees in ice, and they chipped themselves out and went home. Served them right, invading us for cutting off trade with them. I can't believe they wanted to go to war over fabric."

"I think it was more about spite than anything," Elsa replied. "At least the Southern Isles had an appropriate response to the Prince Hans situation. I wonder how he's liking his job as chief mucker of their royal stables?"

"Ugh, can we please not talk about that dorkwad? How about we talk about the princes _you're_ going to be meeting?"

"Oh, yes, and then there's _that_. I can scarcely believe that I let my ministers talk me into this…this…I don't even know what to call it, inviting royal families to send their sons to be considered to become my Prince-Consort. I'm only twenty-one; I'll have plenty of time to worry about 'producing an heir,' as the ministers so delicately put it. And you didn't even try to talk them out of it."

"Elsa, you deserve to have someone special in your life."

"'Someone special'? They're a bunch of complete strangers from foreign lands. What am I even supposed to say to them? And the amount of my schedule that I had to clear for this is just absurd. I have genuinely important business to take care of, and-"

"Actually," Anna interrupted, "maybe I can help with that. Because I've been thinking that I'd like to have a little more responsibility."

"You have plenty of responsibilities."

"Is that what you call them? All I get are the fluff jobs you don't have time for: statue dedications, ship christenings, marketplace openings…I've cut more ribbons and smashed more bottles than Helga the dressmaker!"

"She's a mean drunk, that Helga," Elsa said. "But I see your point. All right, then; you can represent Arendelle at the trade conference next week."

Anna blinked in surprise. "You- You mean it?"

"Of course. It's a fairly small conference—just six local kingdoms. But before then, you'll have to get up to speed on our trade relationships with those countries. Talk to the Minister of the Treasury; she can get you all the information you'll need."

"Wow. I won't let you down, I promise!"

"I know you won't," Elsa said, smiling. "Now, shall we put another log on this fire and talk about less weighty matters? Because I've heard that you and Kristoff-"

Suddenly, the door burst open, and a young page practically flew into the room.

"Majesty!" the page cried. "There's a ship in distress at the mouth of the harbor. It may be sinking!"

Elsa shot to her feet. "Fetch a spyglass," she commanded the page, "and bring it to the top of the southeast tower."

"At once, Highness!" the page replied, and fled out the door again.

***

Captain Ajay Anand was not a man prone to panic, but this situation was severely testing his capacity for calm. The high waves were tossing his small ship around like an empty coconut husk, and now, just as they had reached the harbor mouth of the port of Arendelle and attempted to sail through it to safety, a huge wave had carried the ship sideways and slammed the hull against the point of one of the rocky jetties that shielded the harbor from the sea.

Moments after the ship scraped free of the rocks, the first mate ran up from below decks. The captain could hardly see him in the rain and darkness.

"Sir!" the mate shouted over the howling wind and pouring rain. "We are taking on water through the port-side cargo hold!"

"Get the bilge pumps working!" the captain replied. A big man with big lungs, he could be clearly heard even over the raging storm.

"We have, sir," the mate replied, "but the water is coming in too fast. We are only delaying our sinking!"

"Then work as fast as you can. Go now."

The first mate ran back down into the hold, and the captain went astern to open a door beneath the aft deck.

"Highness!" he shouted over the gale, "The ship is sinking! We must get you to safety."

The voice that replied was that of a man half Captain Anand's age, and it was infused with an incongruous degree of calm.

"We must get us all to safety. I will go below and have any men not working the bilge pumps bring up the empty water barrels from the hold."

"Remaining afloat is not enough, your Highness," the man replied. "This water is as cold as ice. Any man who goes into it will not live long enough to be rescued."

"Then we shall lash the barrels together to form a raft," the placid voice replied.

"I hope there is time!" the captain replied, then went about his work.

***

When the page reached the top of the south tower, Elsa and Anna were already there, wrapped in cloaks and crouching against the wind. The tower was roofed, but the wind was so high that it was essentially raining sideways.

"The spyglass, your Majesty," the young man said, holding the item out to the Queen.

"Thank you!" the monarch shouted over the wind as she accepted the spyglass and put it up to her eye.

Through the rain, she could just make it out—a small sailing ship at the entrance to the harbor, being thrown about by the waves.

Elsa considered the options. She could freeze the seawater around the ship, but there would be a danger of damaging the vessel. Or she could surround the ship with rafts of ice to which the sailors could evacuate, but there was no guarantee that all of them would make it before the ship sank.

No, the best thing would be to coat the ship's hull in ice. That would seal any breaches, and the weight of the ice would stabilize the ship long enough for the crew to sail it safely into the harbor. But at this distance, accomplishing such a feat would require great precision. Elsa could easily form ice into the shapes it was naturally inclined to take—hexagons, fractal patterns—but making it conform to the round undersurface of a ship was a far more complex task, especially at long range.

Still looking through the spyglass, Elsa reached her free hand out toward the wave-tossed ship. Just as she released a stream of ice-magic from her outstretched fingers, the lightning flashed, revealing a few sailors on the deck, struggling against the storm as they tried to save their vessel.

A thought came to her unbidden: Was this what it was like for her parents in their final moments? Did Mother and Father spend their last seconds fighting to survive against a force more powerful than any king or queen? Or did they accept their fate, even as the raging waters claimed them? And did they think of her, and Anna, at the end?

Elsa tried to drive the intruding thoughts out and focus on the task at hand, but it was too late. Her magic struck its target, and the sea froze solid for almost a hundred feet around the ship. Elsa grimaced as she saw that she had used too much of her power. Now, she could only hope that what she had done would save the innocent lives aboard.

Elsa turned and saw that the page who had brought the spyglass was still standing there in the driving rain, awaiting her orders or dismissal.

"Tell the Harbor Patrol to launch their longboats and rescue those sailors!" she shouted. Ironically, the small longboats would be able to navigate the huge waves far more safely than a full-size ship could.

"Yes, your Highness!" the young man cried, and he was off like a shot.

***

"My Prince!" Captain Anand shouted. "I cannot explain it, but the sea around the ship has frozen!"

"It is Arendelle's queen," the prince replied calmly from somewhere beneath the deck. "It appears that the rumors of her magical powers are true."

"Highness, we should still abandon ship," the captain said. "I have sailed in icy waters before. Sea ice can be dangerously unpredictable."

As if on cue, a wooden groaning sound arose from below the deck.

"Then we should evacuate the crew onto the ice," the prince replied. "It should keep us afloat and out of the water long enough for help to arrive. Order the men to abandon ship at once."

The captain's already grim face darkened further. "Highness, it is my duty to remind you of the King's orders. Our gift for Queen Elsa must be saved. We cannot afford for it to end up at the bottom of the sea."

"I will see to it myself," the prince replied. "I will need five men to assist me."

The captain's eyes widened slightly, but he did not question the prince's wishes.

"If you insist, your Highness. Take the men manning the bilge pumps; they can do little good where they are. But please, be careful."

"I shall. Get the other men out; we will join you shortly."

***

"What's happening out there?" Anna asked. Elsa was still squinting through the spyglass.

"I screwed up," Elsa said, handing the spyglass to her sister. Anna peered through it.

"It doesn't look that way to me," the princess said. "They've thrown rope ladders over the side, and they're all getting off the ship and onto the ice safely. They've even managed to save some of their stuff—including a big honking chest. I'd say everything is going-"

Suddenly, the three men remaining on deck, who had been awaiting their turns at the rope ladders, threw caution to the wind and leaped over the side onto the ice, each of them landing painfully somewhere near their fellow sailors.

Then, with a series of loud cracks that could be heard all the way to the tower, the ship seemed to implode. The men on the ice dove for cover as pieces of splintered wood flew out from the ship in every direction. The ice had crushed the vessel like a nutshell in a vise.

"Oh," Anna said. "THAT'S how you screwed up."

END CHAPTER 1


	2. Chapter 2: The Matchmaker

Chapter 2: The Matchmaker

The next morning, Elsa was deep in conversation with the Minister of the Interior and the lords of two of Arendelle's northern provinces about striking a balance between harvesting trees for lumber and ensuring that there would be enough forest left for deer and other animals that people hunted for food. Then there came a knock on the door of the meeting chamber, and Gerda, a longstanding servant of Elsa's family, stuck her head in.

"Your Highness?" Gerda said. "The matchmaker is here."

"And here we go," Elsa sighed. Standing up, she looked at the three men with whom she had been meeting, all of whom got up when their Queen did. "Gentlemen, would you give us a few minutes?"

"Of course, your Majesty," they all said, and filed out.

Elsa turned back to Gerda. "Send her in, please."

"Yes, Majesty."

Gerda stepped out the door and returned a moment later, accompanied by a painfully thin, middle-aged man with a nose that reminded Elsa of a mosquito's proboscis. He wore a jacket of red velvet, the cut of which had been out of fashion for at least a decade.

" _You_ are the matchmaker?" Elsa said.

The man sniffed. "We're not all elderly peasant women, you know. I am Baron Herringholtz, matchmaker to the royal families. I apologize for being unable to arrive further in advance of this event, but I have been travelling far and wide, extending invitations to many eligible princes from fine families."

"I see," said Elsa.

Herringholtz went on, "Through correspondence with your schedule-keeper and your castle's social-planning staff, I have managed to arrange a five-day series of events that will enable you to get to know each of the candidates so that you can make the best possible choice."

"Five days," Elsa said, trying not to sigh. "That's quite a commitment."

"Highness," Herringholtz said nasally, "I hope you would agree that selecting the father of your future offspring is a task worthy of a certain investment of time."

"Of course," said Elsa. "But understand that I make no promise to pick any of them."

"That is your prerogative, your Majesty. Now, the last of the invited princes are arriving this morning. From three to four this afternoon, we shall have Grand Introductions in the throne room, for which I have asked the Princess to join us. Then, at seven, dinner with the princes and their attendants in the second-floor dining room."

Elsa tried not to wince. This was going to be as big a time-sink as she had feared.

"Tomorrow," Herringholtz continued, "you will begin having private interviews with the princes. Three are scheduled for each day, to give you time in between for your other royal duties. Then, tomorrow evening, there will be an intimate ball—just the princes, their attendants, and a few hundred nobles and other prominent citizens. Activities for the remainder of the event are still being planned. Do you have any questions about this process?"

"No," Elsa replied, "but I'd like to note that calling it a 'process' pretty much sucks any pretense of romance right out of it."

"Such are the realities of royalty, your Highness."

***

Anna appeared at the Treasury at nine o'clock sharp. The two guards posted at the door saw her approach.

"Ah, Princess," one of them said as the other opened the door. "The Minister is expecting you."

"Thank you," Anna said, and went inside.

Anna had only ever seen the Minister of the Treasury a couple of times, so she only dimly recalled what the woman looked like. And she had never been inside the Treasury building before. She had half expected something like what she'd seen in picture-books as a child: a room ankle-deep in gold coins, with chests here and there overflowing with jewels, strings of pearls, and gem-encrusted goblets and tiaras. She was a bit disappointed to find only a perfectly ordinary office furnished with a partners' desk at which a pair of accountants sat, alternately writing in a large ledger and arguing with each other over figures.

A door behind them opened, and the Minister entered. She was perhaps in her late fifties, short and a bit plump. She wore her gray hair up in a bun, and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses hung from her neck on a chain, making her appearance somewhat reminiscent of both a librarian and Mrs. Claus.

"Good morning, Princess," she said in a friendly tone. "Welcome to the Treasury. I understand you'll be studying some of our trade records."

"That's the plan," Anna said, trying to sound positive.

"Then follow me, please."

The Minister led Anna through a door with a sign above it that read "Records Room." The chamber beyond did not appear to be frequently used, judging from the layer of dust that seemed to coat everything except for the stack of five thick books that sat on the room's single desk.

"I've retrieved the logs I was told you would need," the Minister said.

"Wow," Anna said, looking at the thick tomes. "Three years' worth of trade records takes up a lot of pages."

"Ohhh," the Minister said, "you wanted records for _three_ years. Just a moment, dear."

Anna watched with something like horror as the Minister pulled ten more thick books off the shelves and placed them on the desk.

"There you are, Princess," she said. "I hope you'll find these informative."

"Oh, my," Anna said. "I guess it's a good thing I packed a lunch." She held up a bag that held a roast elk sandwich and an apple.

"There's no eating in the Records Room, dear," the Minister said. "Happy reading!" Then the older woman departed, shutting the door behind her.

Anna sat down at the little desk, found the book with the oldest date on it, and turned to the first page, coughing as the motion of opening the book sent a small plume of dust from the surface of the desk into the air. Then she looked at the rows and rows of tiny numbers on the page and sighed.

"Oh, Anna," she said to herself as she began to read, "was cutting ribbons really so bad?"

***

Hours later, Anna felt relieved to be sitting at her sister's side in the throne room. Baron Herringholtz was on Elsa's other side, ready to provide her with details about each prince who would be introducing himself to her.

"Now," said Herringholtz, "this first prince is a fine candidate. He is the third son of the Queen of Mianyoka and the nephew of the Grand Duke of the Savannah, and he comes from a long line of courageous warriors."

The doors opened, and in walked a dark-skinned black man who appeared to be about Elsa's age. His shaved head and simple gold earring served to draw attention to the regal handsomeness of his face. He wore a toga-like garment with an eye-catching red-and-white print, but Elsa's gaze was more drawn to the exposed half of his muscular chest. He carried a spear of elegantly carved mahogany, with a head of gleaming steel.

Behind him, an older man—presumably an attendant—entered, bowed silently in Elsa's direction, then moved off to the side and stood quietly, watching the prince as the younger man walked onto the long, blue carpet in front of the pedestal on which Elsa's throne sat, flanked by two side chairs that were currently occupied by Anna and Baron Herringholtz.

 _If all of these princes are going to be this handsome_ , Elsa thought, _this might not be so bad_.

"Greetings, your Majesty!" the younger man said in a masculine baritone. "I am Prince Sefu of Mianyoka, and I have come to seek your hand as prince-consort."

"Welcome, Prince Sefu," Elsa replied. "I hope your journey was comfortable, although I imagine that it was long."

"To see this great kingdom was well worth the trip, your Highness. Arendelle's reputation for beauty and majesty is well deserved." From the way he looked at her, Elsa could tell that he was referring to more than just her kingdom.

"And on a personal note," the prince continued, "it is a great pleasure to be in a land that has no snakes whatsoever."

Elsa saw the prince's attendant wince.

"Um," said Elsa, "I believe you are thinking of Ireland. We do have snakes in Arendelle."

The prince's eyes widened in horror.

"What? Where?" he cried, eyes frantically searching the floor. Then he looked at his attendant. "Mofa! We must set sail for Ireland immediately!"

Before anyone else could speak, Prince Sefu turned and bolted out of the throne room and straight out the castle gates, hightailing it for the docks.

Mofa turned to Elsa.

"Please excuse the Prince, your Majesty," he said. "This is merely a, ah, misunderstanding." The man bowed and exited the throne room as quickly as courtesy would allow.

***

The next several candidates did not flee the throne room, but all had other notable drawbacks. The hulking, blonde Prince Hjalmar of Nordland, a neighboring kingdom, kept wiping his nose on his sleeve and seemed unwilling to remove his helmet. Prince Gormal from the Isle of Lainn was heralded by a pair of bagpipers who played at ear-splitting pitch and volume; the prince himself spoke of nothing but his prowess as a hunter and his mastery of the art of taxidermy. Prince Varek of the eastern kingdom of Rekja did not speak a word of Arendellan, and his attendant proved a poor translator (assuming that Varek did not actually intend to say, "I joyful in nation of chilly virgin"). Prince Javier of Hermosa seemed handsome and intelligent, but after he sneezed partway through his introduction, he immediately began shouting for Dr. Montalvo—his attendant and, apparently, personal physician—to cure him of what the prince declared to be a life-threatening case of avian flu.

Baron Herringholtz was noticeably embarrassed by the showing, but he also appeared determined to press on.

"This next fellow," the matchmaker said after the Hermosan prince was escorted away for treatment, "has an excellent pedigree—his lineage traces back to the first king of his homeland. But," Herringholtz added, "in the interest of transparency, I should inform you that he was not actually invited to this event."

"What do you mean?" said Elsa.

"Well, he is most certainly a good candidate, but I had been under the impression that his father, the King of Sundara, had arranged for him to be married to a princess from a neighboring kingdom. Perhaps I was misinformed. In any case-"

The doors opened, and a man strode in. He was tall and a bit portly, brown-skinned, with a full beard and a maroon turban. A large sword hung at his side.

"Oh, no," Elsa muttered. "He's more than twice my age!"

"Your Majesty, Queen Elsa!" the man boomed, "whose power and beauty mirror those of this magnificent land!"

 _Oh, great, another flatterer_ , Elsa thought. She half expected the man to turn and run like Prince Sefu.

The man continued, "May I introduce His Royal Highness, Prince Rajiv, of the great kingdom of Sundara!"

In walked a second man, shorter and younger than the first, but with a bearing that seemed at once understated and regal.

"Well," Anna said out of the corner of her mouth, " _he's_ easy on the eyes."

Elsa had to agree. The prince, who appeared to be about twenty, was clad in a linen-white dress uniform that was trimmed in maroon and that clearly but tastefully framed his trim, well-toned body. His lustrous, neatly cut brown hair had just a hint of wave. His face was youthful, but there was something about his deep brown eyes that suggested wisdom and patience beyond his years.

 _Oh, dear_ , Elsa thought. _There must be something really wrong with this one._

"Your Majesty," the younger man said with a bow. "I come, not only to seek your hand, but to thank you for your assistance when my ship was foundering last night."

Elsa didn't know why, but something in the prince's tone irritated her. Or maybe it was the way he bowed, which seemed overdone, as though he were subtly mocking her. And 'assistance' seemed an awfully weak choice of words; this prince and his ship's crew would be at the bottom of the sea if it hadn't been for her.

She tried to push these thoughts aside as she replied, "You are welcome, Prince. I am sorry about the loss of your ship."

To her right, she saw Anna eye her with puzzlement. Perhaps Elsa's tone had been a bit icier than she had intended.

"Yes, well," the Prince replied with a slight glower, "that was...unfortunate."

The larger man cut in. "The ship was already lost, your Majesty. You saved our _lives_ , and for that, we shall be forever grateful."

"Thank you, um..." Elsa began.

"Captain Ajay Anand, of the Sundaran Royal Navy, your Highness," the man said, bowing deeply.

"You are welcome, Captain Anand," Elsa said, managing to restore the graciousness to her voice.

"And if I may be so bold, your Majesty," the captain continued, "the Prince has brought you a gift from Sundara, which I believe you will find most useful."

Two Sundaran seamen entered the throne room, pushing a chest on casters. They stopped in the middle of the room, just in front of the prince and the captain. The captain opened the lid.

"Twenty bars of Sundaran steel, your Highness," the captain said. "The finest steel in all the world."

Elsa nodded. "You are very generous. Thank you." But it took an effort to retain her cordial tone as she turned back to the prince and forced out the words, "I look forward to speaking with you at dinner this evening."

"Yes, your Majesty," the younger man replied.

Prince Rajiv and Captain Anand bowed and excused themselves, their men following after them with the chest. Two of the castle servants helped them take the chest out to the courtyard, no doubt for transport to the Royal Armory.

"Now," said Baron Herringholtz, "I have saved the best candidate for last. He is the only son of King Aegeus, so he's quite a catch. You are fortunate to have first crack at him."

A man entered the throne room. He appeared to be about thirty, with olive skin and long, shiny black hair that was tied in a neat ponytail. His face was pleasant, and his robes were a cheerful red and blue.

"Any chance this is the prince?" Elsa whispered to Herringholtz.

"No, your Highness," the baron replied.

"Your Majesty," the man said with a measured bow, "I am Lord Otos, chief aide to King Aegeus of the Archipelago of Dianisia. Please allow me to introduce his Highness, Prince Hypatios."

Through the doors ambled a boy of seven or eight, looking quite overdressed in his ribboned red-and-blue uniform.

"Greetings, Queen Elsa of Arendelle!" the boy shouted, his words obviously rehearsed. "I am deeply honored to have been invited to come to your glorious kingdom to vie for your hand in mat-...matri-...I wanna marry you," he concluded swiftly.

Elsa had never facepalmed herself in the throne room before. But there was a first time for everything.

END CHAPTER 2


	3. Chapter 3: The Love Goddess

Chapter 3: The Love Goddess

Grand Introductions were finally over, and Elsa, Anna, and Baron Herringholtz had retired to the first-floor parlor to discuss the seven would-be Prince-Consorts.

"Soooo," Anna said cautiously, "what did you think of the princes?"

"Oh, Anna," Elsa sighed, "this thing has only been underway for an hour, and it already feels like a fiasco."

Anna looked sharply at Herringholtz. "Okay, Royal Matchmaker Guy, how did you set my sister up with this parade of lose- um, candidates?"

"Well…" Herringholtz said, "the Queen's decision that her husband should be Prince-Consort, rather than King-"

"-is my business, Baron," Elsa said sharply. She didn't want that decision questioned—chiefly because she had made it in order to avoid the type of situation that her sister had fallen into with the villainous Prince Hans.

"Indubitably," Herringholtz replied. "But because Prince-Consort is not a position that carries any real political power, and because it would require the chosen prince to live in Arendelle permanently, the sons that the royal families are most apt to send are, ah, how shall I put it…"

"The ones they don't want back," Elsa finished. She dropped her forehead into her hand.

"Oh, come on," Anna said with a hopeful smile. "So maybe some of them are fixer-uppers. That pile of rocks has got to have at least one diamond in the rough. How about that Prince Rajiv?"

"Are you kidding?" Elsa cried. "He's the worst of them all! He's rude, ungrateful- Oh, and his 'gift' is obviously a ham-handed attempt to get Arendelle interested in buying Sundaran steel. I'd love to tell him exactly where to put his twenty bars of-"

"Okay, whoa," Anna said, raising her palms. "He wasn't that bad. And you weren't exactly nice to him, either."

"It is only your first meeting, Highness," Herringholtz said. "Please try to keep an open mind. You will both have the opportunity to better get to know the candidates this evening at the welcome banquet."

"Oh," said Anna. "I…I didn't realize I was invited."

"Well, of course," Herringholtz said. "You are the Queen's only family. It is both your right and your duty to help her make the best choice of mate."

Anna frowned. She needed to spend at least another hour reading if she was to have any hope of staying on the schedule she had set for herself, she was meeting a friend for tea at five o'clock, and Kristoff had asked her to dinner at his cottage tonight. Then she had an idea.

"Can I bring a date?"

"It would be best," the matchmaker replied, "if you were unescorted. The, ah, gender balance will already be rather uneven, you see, and-"

"-you don't want this thing to turn into a total sausage fest, with the men all competing for my sister's attention."

Herringholtz blinked. "Y-Yes. Quite."

"'Sausage fest'?" Elsa asked.

"It's just something I've heard Kristoff say. I guess men really like sausage."

"If you would not mind," Herringholtz said, "perhaps, during dinner this evening, you could avoid using any other colloquialisms you have learned from this Kristoff."

***

In one of the castle's elegant guest rooms, Prince Rajiv was going through the items in his traveling wardrobe, attempting to find an appropriate outfit to wear to the welcome banquet. Thankfully, most of his belongings had been in watertight chests and had been retrieved from the sea by Arendelle's Harbor Patrol after the storm subsided.

"Highness," Ajay said cautiously, "I am a bit...puzzled...by your behavior during your introduction to Queen Elsa."

"MY behavior?" the prince replied hotly. "She was arrogant and condescending."

"From where do you draw these conclusions, my Prince?"

"When I thanked her for saving us, she sounded as if she expected us to drop to our knees and grovel in gratitude. And the way she said 'I look forward to speaking with you'—she might as well have said 'I look forward to your public beheading.'"

"Well…" Ajay said slowly, "I would suggest that you not read too much into the Queen's tone. These northern kingdoms have strange ways. Perhaps this is merely a cultural misunderstanding."

"Perhaps," Rajiv said grudgingly.

"Let us not let a bad first impression color our judgment," Ajay said. "We have more than two hours until dinner. This seems a good moment for you to practice some of that meditation of yours, to clear your mind so that you may go to the banquet hall with a fresh perspective."

The prince nodded. "You are very wise," he said. "I shall do as you suggest. And Ajay?"

"Yes, your Highness?"

The prince walked over to him. "I am grateful that we and the crew survived the shipwreck unharmed, but...that ship was like a second home to me. I have had many an adventure aboard her with you and the crew. I will miss her very much."

Ajay nodded. "Indeed, my Prince."

"So I can only imagine," Rajiv went on, "how her loss must affect her captain." Then, putting his hand on the big man's shoulder, he said, "I am sorry, my friend."

Ajay put his own hand over Rajiv's and closed his eyes. Then he replied, almost in a whisper, "Thank you, my boy."

***

Anna took a sip of her tea and tried to let the warmth of the soothing liquid lift the ache from her head. Her friend Hildy—Viscountess Hildegard, stepdaughter of the Duke of Hindebor, Master of the Royal Armory—was late for their planned rendezvous at the little tea shop, but that was just as well. Anna hoped to be over her headache before her friend arrived, for although Hildy was fun and an excellent confidante, she could be a bit loud.

"Hey, sexy princess!"

Anna tried to ignore the stabbing pain that shot through her skull as she answered, "Hey, Hildy."

The young viscountess sat down across the small table from Anna. She had a round face, blue eyes, a slightly olive complexion, and long, thickly curly brown hair that she attributed to her Bohemian father. Her figure was decidedly Rubenesque, and she never failed to wear outfits that featured as much cleavage as the human eye could take in. The other consistent item in her ensemble was a small bronze brooch that depicted, somewhat abstractly, the body of a nude man.

"Looks like someone had a rough day at work," Hildy said. "What, did the champagne bottle bounce off the ship and clock you in the head?"

"No, I...I asked Elsa to give me some real responsibility, and now I have to study up for the trade conference next week."

"Oooooh, REAL work," Hildy replied. "I'm surprised you're not dead."

Mock-sweetly, Anna replied, "You are cordially invited to bite me"—her standard response to Hildy's jibes. "I swear, sitting alone in that dusty Treasury records room poring over those trade logs makes every history lesson I had as a child seem riveting by comparison."

"Alone, huh? Well, at least you can play with yourself while you read. That was a big help when the Duke"—Hildy's usual way of referring to her stepfather—"made me read his _Annotated History of Scandinavian Arms_. Although now I get kind of turned on whenever I see a halberd."

"The letters 'TMI' are meaningless to you, aren't they?"

"Completely. Now, on a related subject, I saw Kristoff in town earlier."

"How was he? I haven't seen him in a few days."

"Well, I didn't actually talk to him. He was having some kind of argument with the wainwright, and I was on my way to Helga's for a new ball gown; I find that if you get there before noon, she's still sober enough to hold a measuring tape straight. But Kristoff seemed his usual self: blonde, handsome, muscular, visibly frustrated..."

"Hildy-"

"When are you going to have mercy on that poor boy? I keep expecting to hear a 'boom' and see sleigh parts and bits of woolen outerwear flying up in the air."

"It's...complicated."

"You put the round peg in the round hole. Not that complicated."

"No, not THAT part. It's just that...whenever it seems like we might be about to...you know...I kind of seize up inside. Like I'm afraid I'm about to make some terrible mistake."

"Is this about the thing with Prince Hans?"

"Why does everyone want to talk about that guy? No, I'm totally over that!"

"You realize that you're yelling right now, right?"

Anna looked around and realized that the handful of other customers in the tea shop were looking at her.

"Oops," Anna said, suddenly wishing she could sink out of sight.

"It's not just your boyfriend who's wound up too tight, you know," Hildy said.

Anna looked down at the table. "Yeah, maybe."

"Maybe? Girl, the only person in Arendelle who needs it more than you and Kristoff is your sister."

"That's over the line, Hildy," Anna said, giving her friend a hard look. Anna usually enjoyed Hildy's irreverence—which set her apart from a lot of the other nobles Anna knew—but disrespecting the Queen was not cool.

"You're right. I'm sorry," Hildy said. "But speaking of the Queen, what does she say about your Kristoff situation?"

"I don't talk about...that stuff, with her."

"Are you serious? Talking about men is part of the sisterly experience. And given that you two are playing catch-up in that area, I'd think you'd be all over it."

"It's just that Elsa hasn't dated...anybody. And I'm afraid that talking to her about it might make her, you know, feel bad."

"Yes, your sister rules an entire kingdom AND has superpowers, but I'm sure she'd be sick with envy if you told her your exciting tales of not having sex with the ice-man."

"Fair point, I guess. And besides," Anna said, her mood brightening, "soon we'll both have men to talk about, what with this prince-consort thing." Then she put a hand to her forehead. "Oh, gosh, the prince-consort thing! I have to cancel dinner with Kristoff!" She looked apologetically at Hildy as she dug a few coppers out of her purse to pay for the tea. "I'm sorry—I'd better go. Maybe we could get together tomorrow?"

"Sure. I need to go see the blacksmith now, anyway."

"For what?" Anna asked. "Don't you usually have your servants do errands like that?"

"It's not really an errand. He's a strapping young man, and I have something that needs a good pounding."

"TMI is just three letters, Hildy. They can't be that hard to remember."

***

Within the castle, Prince Rajiv had found a disused courtyard that seemed the perfect place for solitary meditation. He often found inverted yoga poses to be helpful for clearing the mind, so he had unrolled his woven jute mat on the flat gray stones and was now standing on his head, his palms and scalp forming three points of a triangle on the ground. His eyes were closed as the words of his first guru, remembered from when Rajiv was a small boy, came back to him.

"Thoughts cannot be blocked out or pushed away," the old man had said, "for this is not how the mind works. Instead, let the thoughts come, and then let them go."

Rajiv inhaled and exhaled gently, letting the cares of the day flow out of him.

"Hi! Whatcha doing?"

Rajiv's eyes snapped open and took in a bizarre sight. In front of him was something like the head of a man, save that it was whiter than human skin could be, and in place of a nose, it had a…carrot?

Stranger still, the head was upside down, looking Rajiv straight in the eye.

"Um, hello," Rajiv said. "Are you…What are you, exactly?"

"Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. Hi, I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs. Also, I'm a snowman."

"I am Rajiv," the prince said. "You are a man made of snow?"

"You don't have snowmen where you're from? Guess it must be pretty hot there."

Lowering himself down from his headstand, Rajiv replied, "As our Minister of Tourism likes to say, 'You cannot spell _Sundara_ without _sun_.'" Then he added despondently, "Perhaps unsurprisingly, we have very little tourism."

Rajiv straightened up and realized that the upside-down head to which he was talking was not actually attached to anything. He felt distinct ripples in the formerly glassy pond of his inner peace as he watched two skinny wooden arms pick up the carrot-faced snow-head, flip it right-side up, and stick it onto its snow-body.

"Soooooo," Rajiv said cautiously, "are you, ah, part of a race of snow-people, or…?"

"No, no, it's just me," the now-whole snowman said, seemingly oblivious to its own weirdness. "Elsa brought me to life with her snow-magic."

"The Queen created you?" Rajiv asked. Perhaps this was why the snowman was a bit annoying.

"Yeah, I was an accident, but she loves me anyway. So what was that you were doing?"

"It is a discipline called yoga," Rajiv said. "Among other things, it is intended to help calm the mind."

"Wow, that's, that's really interesting. And, uh, how come you do it?"

"When I was very young," Rajiv said patiently, "I was terribly afraid of the water. I would not go within fifty feet of the shore, let alone go out on a boat. My father thought that studying yoga and meditation would help me to overcome my fears, so I began my studies before I was even four years old. Now I love the water; I have been on many sea voyages with my friend Ajay."

"Neat! Can I try it?"

Rajiv looked at Olaf. The snowman's body did not appear to be well suited for headstands. But Rajiv was seized by an impish urge to see him attempt one.

"Certainly," Rajiv said. "Just put your hands on the ground, then slowly bend down and put your head down in front of them. Leaving it attached to your body, that is."

Olaf did as instructed.

"Now, gently kick your feet into the air," Rajiv said.

The snowman again complied, and Rajiv caught his feet to steady him.

"Look! I'm doing it!" Olaf shouted.

"Very good," Rajiv said, letting go of the snowman's feet. "Now, simply hold that position for a few minutes."

"Um, Rajiv?" Olaf said, starting to wobble, "I- I don't think I'm built right for this. I'm a- a little too bottom-heavy."

"You'll be fine," the prince said with a smile. "I must now go prepare for the Queen's banquet. It was nice to meet you." He began to walk toward the door that connected the courtyard to the interior of the castle.

"Come back!" Olaf cried, now wobbling even more violently. "I can't do this by myself! My arms are literally sticks!"

"Well," Rajiv said as he disappeared through the doorway, "although we may not have snow where I come from, I do know one thing about it: It falls very softly."

"Wait! AAAAAAH!" Olaf screamed as he fell over onto his back—and landed completely unharmed.

"Oh. Right," the snowman said to the gray sky.

END CHAPTER 3


	4. Chapter 4: The Snowman and the Falcon

Chapter 4: The Snowman and the Falcon

When Anna arrived at Kristoff's cottage (which Anna considered a better choice of word than "shack"), she found the ice-man outside, unloading bales of straw from his wagon to carry into his half-subterranean ice house.

"Hey, Anna," he said. "You're early; I only just got here myself. Now that the weather's warming up, the ice needs a little more insulation."

"You want some help?" she said, dismounting her horse.

"No, I'm good," he said. He hefted two bales, one on top of the other, and put them down by the door of the ice house.

"C'mon," she said, going to the back of the wagon and putting her hands under another pair of bales. "Let me grab a couple of these."

She tried to lift them, and they wouldn't even budge.

"Okay, let me grab ONE of these," she said, grunting as she lifted it.

"Anna," Kristoff said, "you don't have to do that."

"I know, I just want to," Anna said, panting as she put the bale next to the ice house door with the others.

"It's just…It's not your job, okay?"

"Please tell me you're not saying that I shouldn't do manual labor because I'm a princess."

"Well, I- Look, why don't you go inside and get cleaned up while I finish up here? You can help me with dinner."

"I'm sorry, that's- that's why I came over. I can't have dinner with you tonight."

"Oh," Kristoff said. "Something come up?"

"It's this…prince-fest we're having for Elsa. There's a banquet thing tonight, and I need to be there."

"Sure, I understand," Kristoff said.

"I asked if I could bring you along, but-"

"It's no big deal. I'll make you my famous Herring Surprise another time."

"Look, it's not-"

"You probably need to go get ready. I'll see you later, okay?"

Anna found herself simultaneously irked and despondent. Over the last few months, it had become clear to her that Kristoff had some issues about being a commoner dating someone who lived in a world of royals and nobles. But it seemed like any time she tried to address those concerns with him, he would just shut her down. And pushing harder would only turn the conversation into an argument.

"All right," she said resignedly, climbing back onto her horse. "I'll see you later."

***

As the sun sank below the horizon, Anna took her seat in the castle's smallest banquet hall. Herringholtz had arranged the seating so that Elsa was at the head of the table, and the princes occupied the chairs nearest her. Anna sat halfway down the table, with Elsa and the princes on her right and the seven attendants to her left.

The princes had all arrived in their finest regalia, but the most eye-catching outfit by far was Prince Sefu's. Despite his earlier attempt to flee Arendelle for the snake-free shores of Ireland, the African prince had nonetheless appeared for the welcome banquet (probably convinced by his attendant, Mofa, Anna thought). Sefu wore a shuka—a toga-like garment like the one he had worn earlier, save that this one was bright red shot through with gold threads—and, far more notably, he wore a pair of wooden stilts that were strapped to his calves and that added about two feet to his height. The ease with which the prince walked on them suggested that he wore them frequently.

They had just finished their salads and were awaiting the second course when Prince Varek looked at Elsa and said something in his own language. His attendant, Popov, interpreted: "Viewing you not clad with big knife."

"Um..." Elsa replied.

Prince Javier, sporting a burgundy suit with a huge, frilly white collar, spoke up, even as he poured what smelled like rubbing alcohol from a flask onto his hands for the third time since dinner began.

"I believe," the Hermosan prince said, "he is making the observation that you do not wear a sword."

"Many queens do, these days," added Prince Gormal. The man was clad in a kilt with his family's blue, black, and green tartan. Anna had observed when he entered the room that he definitely had the legs for it.

"Indeed," said Prince Sefu, whose place was set next to Elsa's but who had pushed his chair a few feet back from the table—apparently so that he could keep one eye on the floor at all times. "My mother does. In fact, it was she who chose my name, which means 'sword' in my people's language."

"It's...not the image I want to project," Elsa said awkwardly. Then, perhaps not wanting to appear to be criticizing Sefu's mother, she added, "Not right now, at least."

"Well, Highness," said Prince Gormal, "if you change your mind, I'd suggest a fine blade like this one."

He drew a short, machete-like weapon whose blade bore many scratches but flashed brightly in the lamplight, indicating both extensive use and meticulous care.

"I once cut clean through the skull of a wild boar with this," Gormal boasted. "Spilled its brains on the forest floor like nutmeats."

Most of the other princes and attendants grimaced, and Prince Javier turned positively green. Anna thought it particularly unfortunate that the servers were just at that moment bringing out the second course—oyster stew. Young Prince Hypatios, however, simply said, "Cooool."

"Swords are fine for little men," said Prince Hjalmar, who had arrived wearing his helmet but had removed it and set it on the table after he sat down. "But for a warrior, there's nothing as good as an axe."

He pulled his weapon from his belt and held it up. The axe was a wicked-looking thing, with a broad blade on the front of its head and a sharp spike on the back.

Anna found herself channeling Hildy as she thought, _Jeez, why don't they just unzip and compare lengths?  
_  
She was glad there were no guards in the room; they might have reacted badly to people drawing weapons in the Queen's presence. Despite the guard captain's objections, Elsa never had personal bodyguards. She said she didn't need them, given that she could defend herself more than adequately, and that was certainly true. But in private, Elsa had confessed to Anna that she had another reason: Elsa didn't want to intimidate people by having armed men standing behind her all the time.

"Gentlemen," said Herringholtz from the foot of the table, "perhaps we could save this particular discussion for a more appropriate time and place."

Gormal, his attendant glaring at him, quickly sheathed his sword. Hjalmar grunted and slowly put away his axe.

Anna, attempting to restore civility by changing the subject, said, "So, what do you all do back home?"

Sefu spoke up. "I am a captain in Mianyoka's capitol city guard. I have been leading an initiative to use hot air balloons to keep watch over the city—when the weather permits, at least."

"How interesting," Elsa said.

 _Keeps you well off the ground, too_ , Anna thought.

"I myself," said Prince Javier, "engage in scholarly pursuits. I have a particular interest in communicable diseases; I am writing a book about the plagues of Europe and the Near East."

 _Shocker_ , Anna thought ironically.

Anna heard Otos, young Prince Hypatios' attendant, clear his throat.

"Um," began the diminutive prince, who was clad in formal black eveningwear that seemed out of place on one so young, "I- I study, too. I study geography, and history, and, ah, languages. The King wants me to be a diplomat when I grow up."

"You're not expecting to be king yourself someday?" Anna asked, recalling that Hypatios was King Aegeus' only son.

"No," the prince said. "I have, uh, four older sisters, and we have prime- prima-"

"Primogeniture," Elsa said, referring to the practice—uncommon, but becoming more popular—of passing the royal title to the king or queen's eldest child, regardless of sex. "Your family is very forward-thinking. I would like to know who Dianisia's future queen will be; what is your eldest sister's name?"

"Uh, it's, it's, um, Gabriella," the boy replied.

Elsa seemed to sense Hypatios' discomfort with being put on the spot, and said, "What about the rest of you? What do you do with your days?"

Prince Gormal, with deep pride, said, "I have made it my goal to slay and preserve at least one of every great beast this continent has to offer. And then, perhaps, move on to others." He glanced at Prince Sefu, maybe hoping for an invitation.

Captain Anand cleared his throat, rather less subtly than Lord Otos had, and Anna realized that Prince Rajiv hadn't yet spoken since they sat down to dinner. The prince was looking rather dashing in a royal-blue kurta—a collarless, knee-length shirt that buttoned partway down—and white trousers. Thus cued, Rajiv broke his silence.

"I am an officer in my country's navy," he said curtly.

"Although," Captain Anand added, "the conditions of his commission are such that he can resign at any time, if necessary."

 _Just in case we were worried that he wasn't available for marriage_ , Anna thought. _Subtlety is obviously not the Captain's thing. I bet Hildy would like him._

Prince Varek, into whose ear Popov had been quietly interpreting the dinner conversation, spoke up again. Popov translated, "What your station?"

Guessing as to Varek's meaning, Prince Rajiv replied, "My rank is lieutenant commander."

"Really?" Elsa said, a bit icily. "That seems quite high for someone your age."

Rajiv looked at her sharply. "What are you implying?"

"I'm not implying anything," the Queen said, her tone clearly belying that statement.

"The navy is for puny men," Prince Hjalmar broke in. "I was part of an expeditionary force in Nordland's Royal Marines. I led-"

"I wasn't finished speaking," Rajiv interrupted.

"You do not need to finish," Hjalmar growled. "No queen would be interested in a feeble little man like you."

"How dare you!" Rajiv said, standing. Hjalmar's face reddened with anger.

Suddenly, Hjalmar passed out and fell face-first into his oyster stew. Hjalmar's attendant, Halfdan, ran over to him and pulled the prince's face out of the bowl.

"Please excuse Prince Hjalmar," the attendant said. "He is somewhat prone to these fainting spells, particularly when he gets upset."

Anna realized that this explained Hjalmar's reluctance to remove his helmet while standing, and why he had spoken of his military activities in the past tense. His days in the service had probably been numbered once his condition was revealed.

 _Maybe Elsa should pick him_ , Anna thought wryly. _At least any arguments they had would be short._

"If you will excuse me," Prince Rajiv said coldly, "I need some air." He walked out, Captain Anand in close pursuit.

"And, um," Prince Hypatios said, "I would like to visit the fass- the facil-"

"Down the hall to the left," Anna said kindly.

***

Olaf was in the courtyard practicing his headstands when a young boy came out the castle door. The snowman had never seen the boy before, which meant that he might be someone interesting. Olaf dropped awkwardly onto his feet and went over to him.

"Wow," the boy said as Olaf approached, "an actual live snowman, like in my grandpapa's stories! Can you talk?"

"I sure can," said Olaf. "How about you? Oh wait, I already heard you talk. Hey, maybe you could use your power of speech to tell me your name!"

"I'm Prince Hypatios, from Dianisia," the boy said.

"Oh, you're here for that prince thing Queen Elsa is having."

"Yeah," the young prince said, his eyes turning downward. "But...I'm no good at it. It's all grownups except me, and a lot of the time, I don't know what to say. Then I get all nervous."

"Yeah, I understand," Olaf replied. "It's hard being the only snowman wherever I go. You don't know how many times I've heard people say things like, 'Eek, it's alive!' or 'Here, take these carrots and spare my children!' or 'Egads, a snow golem!' Are snow golems even a thing?"

The boy chuckled, his spirits slightly lifted.

"What's your name, anyway?" the prince asked.

"Gosh, I've gotten really bad about introducing myself lately. I'm Olaf, and I like warm hugs."

"Really?" the boy replied, glancing around as if to see if anyone was watching. Then he whispered, "Me too," and threw his arms around the delighted snowman.

***

Kristoff dismounted Sven and, leaving the reindeer to chat with the horses tied up in front of the Surly Mermaid tavern, went inside for a beer. With his evening unexpectedly free, he had gotten a few extra chores done, and he figured he had earned a reward in the form of an adult beverage. Plus, he needed a pick-me-up after the day he'd had, with the wainwright refusing to budge on the price of a tune-up for Kristoff's ice wagon, Anna cancelling dinner, and Sven acting snippy with him all day. (Reindeer mating season was approaching, and Sven was probably starting to get hormonal.)

Upon entering, he was greeted by an unwelcome—and unwelcoming—sight: At one of the rough-hewn wooden tables near the door sat Henrik and Grimmjaw, two of his fellow ice dealers. Kristoff had only a few friends in town, and these two certainly weren't among them.

"Hey, it's Kristoff Bjorgman, the royal Ice Master," Henrik said, his bushy blonde beard doing nothing to hide his sneer.

"Oh, good evening, your Lordship," his wiry companion said, getting clumsily to his feet and giving Kristoff a mocking bow. "Making a special delivery to the Queen this evening?"

"It'd be the Princess getting the special delivery," Henrik slurred.

Kristoff rolled his eyes. These guys were jerks when they were sober, and it only took a few beers to promote them from jerk to complete dillweed.

"Easy, fellas," Kristoff said, trying to keep his growing irritation out of his voice. "I'm just here for a beer, same as you."

"Oh, yes," Grimmjaw said. "Must be thirsty work, makin' all those deliveries to the redheaded royal. Makes a man dehydrated."

Kristoff's hands balled into fists, and he felt the heat of anger on the back of his neck. He had already been on edge when he walked in; he didn't need to hear these guys talking garbage about his girlfriend.

"Tell us," Grimmjaw went on "does she prefer you to make your deliveries through the front entrance, or the rear?"

Kristoff couldn't stop himself—with his considerable strength augmented by anger, he grabbed Henrik by the lapels and hauled the burly man out of his chair, bringing his face inches from Kristoff's.

"If you EVER say anything like that about the Princess again, I swear I'll-"

"Let him go, Bjorgman," said a voice from behind him. "This'll be your only warning."

Kristoff turned around and saw Knut, the tavern-keeper, standing about five feet behind him. He was an older man, and on the small side, but the hard look in his eye and the loaded crossbow in his hands made it clear that he was willing and able to cause some grievous bodily harm if need be.

Kristoff released Henrik, letting the man drop back into his chair.

"I won't have you boys wrecking my bar with one of your fist fights," Knut said. Then he looked at Kristoff. "Now you—out." The tavern-keeper gestured toward the door with his crossbow.

"But I didn't-" Kristoff began. "I mean, I wasn't-"

"Trouble started when you walked in here. Figure it'll end when you walk out."

"Fine," Kristoff grumbled, and left.

***

Dinner had ended, and all of the princes and their attendants had retired for the evening. Elsa had asked Anna and Baron Herringholtz to stay behind, so as the servants cleared the last of the dishes from the table, the three sat at one end, where they could talk.

"Well, that could have gone better," Elsa said.

"I am afraid I must agree," Herringholtz replied. "I expected a certain amount of competitiveness among the princes, of course, but not quite so much open hostility."

Anna looked at Elsa. "I don't think it helped when you picked a fight with Prince Rajiv during dessert."

"He said he hated chocolate!" Elsa cried. "In this castle, that's blasphemy."

"I believe," Herringholtz said carefully, "he merely said that he did not care for it."

"For a second there," Anna added, "I thought you were going to throw your cake at him."

"I won't say I didn't feel the urge," Elsa replied. "But I didn't think a food fight would be the best way to cap off my first day with the princes."

"Prince Hypatios might have liked it, though," Anna said. "That poor kid; he didn't seem too happy to be there. Although he DID like the cake."

Elsa sighed. "Seven princes in a race for my hand in marriage, and an eight-year-old is leading the pack."

Anna nodded. "I think Prince Javier fell a little behind when he started shouting for Dr. Montalvo to give him medicine because his yellow fever had returned. I'm starting to see why Montalvo carries that black bag with him wherever they go."

"Well," Herringholtz sniffed, "I would not be too concerned about the events of this evening repeating themselves at the ball tomorrow night; there will be plenty of other company to dilute the princes' rivalry." He looked at Elsa. "Before then, your Highness, you shall have your first three private interviews with the princes: Sefu in the morning, Javier at mid-day, and Gormal in the afternoon. The next day will be Varek, Hjalmar, and Rajiv, and on the following morning, Hypatios. I have given all of the princes and their attendants the schedule."

Anna looked out the window and sighed.

"What?" said Elsa.

"I hope Kristoff had a better evening than we did."

***

Kristoff was riding home the long way, on the road that passed by the castle. He wasn't planning to visit at this late hour, but he hoped that at least seeing Anna's home would make him feel a little better.

He gazed up at the parapets. It would be nice if he could catch a glimpse of her, but that was probably too much to hope for.

At that moment, he heard the cry of a bird taking off from the castle's western tower, where he saw the figure of the person who had released it. It was little more than a shadow on this overcast night.

This was not an unusual sight, as various personnel at the palace used messenger birds to communicate over distance. But, Kristoff, thought, didn't they launch the birds from the aviary in the south tower?

Maybe he was just misremembering where the aviary was. He needed to go home and get some sleep.

Tomorrow would be a better day. At the very least, the odds were against its being worse.

END CHAPTER 4


	5. Chapter 5: The Minister

Chapter 5: The Minister

The next morning, Anna emerged from her bedchamber and headed for the sitting room, where she customarily ate breakfast—chiefly because she knew Elsa would join her there if she weren't already in meetings.

Being fully dressed, and wanting to see what was afoot in the castle before sitting down to tea and toast, Anna decided to take a roundabout route to the sitting room, exiting the set of rooms that she and Elsa occupied and entering one of the castle's upstairs corridors. It was along this hallway that the seven princes and their attendants had been housed for the duration of their visit.

A door opened, and Prince Hjalmar came out into the hallway, trailed by his attendant, Halfdan. Upon seeing Anna, the prince grunted in what she assumed was a greeting.

"Good morning," Anna replied.

Hjalmar hocked a loogie out the window. A shout of "What the- Oh, GROSS!" rose from the castle steps below.

The Nordlandish prince then strode past Anna without another word. Halfdan followed behind him, stopping for a moment in front of Anna and then hurrying along again, as though he had been about to offer an apology and then realized that he wouldn't know where to begin.

"Charming," Anna said to no one.

"Ah, good morning, your Highness," said a voice from behind her. Anna turned and saw Captain Anand holding the door for Prince Rajiv, who emerged into the hallway.

"Oh, um, hi," Anna said, her tone suddenly made awkward by her recollection of the scene between Elsa and Rajiv the previous night.

"Good morning, Princess," Rajiv said, bowing. "I hope you slept well."

"I, I did. Thank you. How about you?"

"Very well indeed," the prince replied. "Your feather beds are quite comfortable."

"It's the, ah, geese," Anna said. "They've got great feathers. Are, um, you guys on your way to breakfast?"

"We are," Rajiv replied. "Baron Herringholtz gave us several options regarding where to eat breakfast this morning; I suspect that he thinks it unwise to put us all in the same room again so soon. In any event, Ajay and I are going down to the mess hall to see how your palace guards eat."

"The food cannot be worse than what we eat in the Sundaran Navy," Ajay added jovially.

"I don't know," Anna replied. "Just remember that you're in the land of pickled herring and lutefisk."

"What is this lutefisk?" Rajiv asked. "I've heard it mentioned more than once since we arrived."

"It's…probably better if I don't tell you," Anna said, thinking that a description of fish soaking in lye until the bones turned to jelly might put even these hardy fellows off their breakfast.

"Some mysteries are best left to gods and cooks," Rajiv joked.

Even as she laughed, Anna found herself puzzled by the prince's demeanor. Rajiv seemed like a completely different person from the bitter, hostile man she had seen in the throne room and the banquet hall. Or maybe he was just playing nice to get on her good side. Anna had long since stopped trusting her own judgment when it came to men—especially handsome princes.

"Well," she said, "gotta run. Toast awaits."

"Then I wish you a good morning," the prince said. "And I look forward to seeing you at the ball tonight."

"Um, yeah," Anna said, walking away as the mention of the ball raised a rapid sequence of questions in her head— _What am I going to wear? Is Kristoff invited? What if a sword-and-axe fight breaks out?_ "Should be a blast. See you there."

***

Kristoff woke up at sunrise. He didn't really want to—not because he wanted to sleep longer per se, but because it would be nice to wake up late after a pleasant evening of drinking with friends, rather than waking up at dawn after being run out of a bar at arrow-point without a single mug of beer in him and then turning in early.

But it was a new day, and there were things to do. He opened a bag of feed for Sven. Then, while the deer munched away, Kristoff shuffled out to the ice house, where he had stowed a few eggs and a hunk of salmon. One of the perks of being an ice-man was abundant cold storage.

Cooking breakfast reminded him that he was low on firewood, so after he and Sven finished eating, they ventured into the woods to gather some. All the recent rain would mean that anything they found would be wet, but storing it in the house for a few days would let it dry out enough to burn.

They walked among the trees, Kristoff selecting fallen branches and sticks, cutting them to size with a hatchet as necessary, and putting them on the sledge that he and Sven were dragging.

He found a log that looked promising, and he was about to inspect it for rot when he heard movement. Stopping in his tracks, he listened carefully and surmised that it was the sound of someone walking through the woods.

He gestured for Sven to stay put. Then, gripping his hatchet, he moved toward the source of the sound. Maybe it was just someone out looking for wild berries. Or maybe it was one of the area's less reputable woodcutters, here to poach a few trees before the legal logging season began—and perhaps take a swing of his axe at any witnesses. Or maybe it was an ogre.

With these possibilities rushing through his mind, he crept close enough to see a human figure through the leaves. He leaped out to confront it—and found himself staring at the point of a foot-long dagger.

"YAAAAH!" he shouted, throwing up his hands.

"AAAAAH!" a woman's voice shrieked back.

He looked past the dagger at the person holding it.

"Hildy!?"

"Kristoff?" the woman said, partly lowering the dagger. "What are you doing out here?"

"I live near here. I was just gathering some firewood. What are YOU doing here? And what's with that nasty piece of steel you're carrying?"

"Oh," Hildy breathed, her considerable bosom heaving. "The Duke makes me carry it. 'No stepdaughter of the Master of the Royal Armory is going to walk around without proper protection,' he says. I guess he's worried that I might be ambushed in the woods by some axe-wielding maniac."

"Oh. Sorry," Kristoff said, lowering the hatchet. Looking back at the dagger, he added, "It's, ah, definitely intimidating."

"You should see the piece my stepsister carries," Hildy said as she slipped the dagger into its hilt behind her skirts. "Makes this one look like a fruit knife."

Kristoff was mildly curious, but he stuck to the matter at hand.

"So, what brings you out here?"

"Well, don't tell anyone, but...You know the caves at the base of the east mountain?"

"Sure; they're less than a mile from here. When I started my ice business, I thought about storing the ice in those caves, but they're too hard to get to with a wagon."

"Well, my mom's birthday is coming up next month, and she loves cheese, so I've been aging some in those caves. They say every cave lends the cheese a unique flavor. In fact, if it turns out well, I might even start a little business, just for fun."

Two thoughts flashed through Kristoff's mind—that it must be nice to be able to start a business just for fun, and that Hildy seemed like the perfect person to sell cheese, given that just looking at her made some men think of dairy products.

"Well," Kristoff said awkwardly, "I'll, uh, let you get to it, then. Oh, and…watch out for axe-wielding maniacs."

Hildy chuckled and went on her way.

***

Anna had four of the fifteen record books open in front of her when the Minister of the Treasury popped in.

"How's the reading going, Princess?" the older woman asked.

"Um, just fine," Anna replied. "I have a couple of questions, though."

The Minister's eyes lit up. It was clear that this woman was not used to people expressing interest in her work.

"Go right ahead, dear."

"Well," Anna said, glancing back at the open books in front of her, "I've been looking at some of the products that Arendelle exports, and...What's pine pitch?"

"It's a sticky substance made from boiling down the sap from pine trees," the Minister said, pacing slowly like a teacher in front of a blackboard. "It's mainly used to make ships' hulls watertight."

"Huh. I was just noticing that our exports of that are way down."

"That's just seasonal variation, dear. Demand doesn't peak until the summer, which is the prime season for shipbuilding."

"Actually," Anna said, pointing at a line in one book, then a corresponding line in another, "I meant compared to this time last year. And the year before that."

"Ah," the Minister said, putting on her reading glasses and peering at the tiny lines of text. "Well, I imagine that competition from Nordland has cut into Arendelle's business somewhat. They have more manpower and more trees."

"What about sulfur? Exports of that are way down, too."

"Well," the Minister said pensively, "sulfur is mostly used for pest control, dear. And last year's unexpected…cold spell…rather diminished the insect population here and in neighboring kingdoms."

"Huh. And then there's-" Anna glanced down at a book "-catgut?" She swallowed. "We don't actually...I mean...?"

The Minister chuckled. "No dear, we don't slaughter cats. Catgut comes from goats. It's used for stitching up wounds, and in strings for musical instruments."

"Oh, okay. Because it looks like we're exporting more of that this year, along with some other goat products, like mohair and goat cheese."

"I'm afraid we're profiting from another's misfortune. The other major exporter of goat products in this part of the world is Dianisia, and they've had some sort of goat disease going around this year." The Minister cleared her throat. "It's not terribly serious, I'm told, but it has set back their production somewhat."

"Wow," said Anna. "Trees, pests, goats, diseases—all kinds of things affect trade."

"They do indeed, dear," the Minister said, smiling. "That's what makes the subject so interesting."

"Interesting" struck Anna as an overstatement, but she held her tongue.

***

Kristoff walked through the castle's main doors and into the massive entry hall. The guards had let him in without argument; Elsa had given him special dispensation to be in the castle unescorted so that he could visit Anna at will.

As he looked around, he saw Elsa emerge from one of the downstairs parlors about a hundred feet away. Half-jogging to cover the distance, he approached her.

"Hey, your Majesty," he said. He always called her by her honorific when they were in public. "I was just looking for Anna."

"Oh, hello, Kristoff. She's over at the Treasury, reading," Elsa replied.

"Oh, yeah, she told me about the trade conference thing," Kristoff said. "She's been working pretty hard to get ready for it. I think she wants to make you proud of her."

"I already am. Imagine where this kingdom would be without her...or you. How are you two getting along these days?"

"What, Anna doesn't talk to you about us?"

"Well...not a lot, no."

"Um, fine, I guess. I mean, she's my first serious girlfriend since I was...well, born, so I don't have much to compare our relationship to. But...I think she's a little…hesitant. You know, because of the Hans thing."

"Indeed," Elsa said, nodding. "I can't even say his name without her exploding."

"Yeah," Kristoff said, a bit gloomily. Then he forced himself to lighten up. "But at least she knows that if I break her heart, her big sister can turn me into an ice sculpture."

Kristoff chuckled until he noticed the serious look that Elsa was giving him.

"Kristoff," she said slowly, seeming to be thinking even as she was speaking, "if Anna made a joke about how she'd better do what you say because you're bigger than she is and could beat her up, would you think that was funny?"

"N- No, I guess I wouldn't. But how does…ohhh, I get it."

"I just don't want people to be afraid of me," Elsa said, eyes downcast.

"Well," Kristoff replied, "you ARE the queen. Shouldn't people be a little afraid of you? At least sometimes?"

"Not my own people," Elsa replied. "I just...I feel like I've scared them enough for a whole lifetime. Sometimes I wonder if they're still afraid that my powers are a curse that's going to destroy the kingdom one day."

"Oh, come on. Last month, when you used your powers to stop Big Elk Dam from breaking and washing half a village into the fjords, everybody there called you a hero. I've heard that both of the baby girls born in Big Elk Village since then were named Elsa. And the one boy was named Elwin."

"Oh, that poor child," Elsa said. She smiled a little as she added, "Maybe THAT'S the curse."

"Besides," said Kristoff, "I'M not scared of you."

Elsa raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"

"Nope. And I'll prove it."

He opened his arms wide. Elsa looked at him, uncertain.

"C'mon, bring it in," the ice-man said, smiling and wiggling his fingers in invitation.

Elsa moved into his arms, and Kristoff wrapped them around her. She stiffened for a moment, then relaxed as the man gently pulled her against his big, warm body.

"See?" Kristoff said. "I don't hug people I'm scared of."

Enveloped in Kristoff's welcoming arms, Elsa felt her anxieties draining away, and a sort of contentment taking their place.

"You're good at this, you know that?" Elsa said, leaning her head against Kristoff's chest.

"Thanks. When you grow up hugging rock trolls, hugging humans is a cinch by comparison."

Elsa smiled, her eyes closing for a moment.

"Well, since you're the expert," she asked, "how long can we do this before it gets weird?"

"Riiiight about this long," Kristoff replied, relaxing his hold on Elsa. As she stepped back, he added, "I guess I'd better go find Anna. See you later, your Highness."

"See you later," Elsa agreed. "And Kristoff?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

END CHAPTER 5


	6. Chapter 6: The Attendants

Chapter 6: The Attendants

"So," Anna said, standing in the doorway of Elsa's bedchamber, "how'd it go today?"

Elsa sighed. "I just spent an hour listening to Prince Gormal talk about, among other things, the best way to remove the eyes from a freshly killed stag so that you can put in glass ones while you're stuffing it."

"Yeesh," said Anna. Suddenly, reading all those dusty books didn't seem so bad. "What about your other two interviews?"

Elsa sucked in a breath, then bit her lip before saying, "Sefu seems like a nice fellow, and I'm sure he'd be very interesting to talk to if he could maintain eye contact for more than two seconds instead of constantly glancing at the floor. And Prince Javier would be quite charming if he didn't keep calling for Dr. Montalvo every ten minutes to bring him pills for his malaria, yellow fever, septicemic plague...I swear, how does he think he could even be alive if he had all that?"

"I guess thinking doesn't really enter into it," said Anna.

"Oh, and in between these amusing chats, there's my actual job. I'm trying to resolve a dispute over logging rights, the Big Elk Dam still needs some expensive repairs, and our funds from last year's taxes are running low...ugh."

"Shhh, not so loud," Anna said in a mock whisper. "You'll disappoint all the little girls who want to grow up to be you."

Elsa smiled wanly. "Well, we can't have that. And it's not as though I hate my work; the truth is, ruling Arendelle is a wonderful experience. It's as though I can see every little piece of it and how they all fit together to make up the kingdom I love."

Anna smiled at her. "So the view is better from here than from the North Mountain?"

Her smile warmed. "Much better."

Thinking of the view made Anna glance out the window. The sun was getting low in the sky.

"Okay, I'd better run," Anna said. "I'm meeting up with Hildy, and since I kind of blew her off yesterday, I don't want to be late."

"That's fine," Elsa said. "I'll be here reading memos while Gerda straps me into my ballgown. I swear, putting on a suit of armor would probably take less time and effort."

"Queen's gotta look good for her peeps," Anna said with a grin. Seeing Elsa's quizzical look, Anna felt her face get a little warm as she added, "I guess that's another 'colloquialism' I've picked up."

"You're a woman of the people," Elsa said, smiling. "See you later."

Anna went down the hall toward the spiral stairs that led down to the main floor. As she turned the corner into the stairwell, she nearly ran right into Baron Herringholtz.

"Ah, your Highness," the Baron said awkwardly. "Good afternoon."

"Good afternoon, Baron," Anna replied. "What have you been up to?"

"Just…taking a constitutional," Herringholtz answered. "Please excuse me—I must attend to some business. I will see you at the ball this evening."

"Of course," Anna replied.

The man walked off, and Anna found herself wondering about the bulge she had noticed in Herringholtz's red velvet jacket. It had a shape like a plus sign; what would that be?

Then Anna realized—it was the hilt of a dagger. This struck her as odd, because there was no rule in the castle against carrying weapons openly. Why would Herringholtz conceal one?

She doubted that the man was a threat, but she couldn't take the chance. But she also couldn't spy on him herself without being obvious. A high profile was one of the downsides of being a princess, she supposed.

She turned around and went back toward Elsa's chambers, knowing there were guards stationed at various places on that floor of the castle. She soon found a pair of them and approached the more senior one.

"Baron Herringholtz," she said in a low voice. "Keep an eye on him."

"Yes, your Highness," the guard said.

***

Anna met up with Hildy in the clothing district for some window shopping. The princess hadn't wanted to return to the tea shop, as she was a bit embarrassed about having drawn stares there the day before.

She didn't actually need to shop for clothes—the royal tailor would make her anything she needed, and precisely to her measurements—but it never hurt to seek a little inspiration. And it was nice to be looking at things that were more than two feet away from her face. She was starting to wonder if she'd be nearsighted when all of her reading was done.

"So," Anna said, "are you coming to the ball tonight?"

"Hmm," Hildy said mock-pensively. "Come and see seven hunks from exotic foreign lands in their finest formalwear? No, I think I'll stay home and catch up on my needlepoint. Yes, of course I'm coming!"

"'Hunks' might not be the right word," Anna said. "At this point, I'm not sure Elsa is going to pick any of them."

"Hmm," Hildy replied. "Well, I'm not too proud to check out a royal castoff. And speaking of things that end in 'stoff,' will Kristoff be on your arm tonight?"

"That is the worse segue in history," Anna replied, "but yes. I thought I'd have to ask Herringholtz to put him on the guest list, but he's already on it. I guess being royal Ice Master makes him a 'prominent citizen.'"

"Doesn't seem to be making him rich, though," Hildy said, "if his attempted haggling with the wainwright yesterday is anything to go by. Or is he just the type that likes to argue?"

"No, he's not like that," Anna replied.

Anna knew the reason: Kristoff was in quite a lot of debt. He had never discussed it with her, but it hadn't been hard to deduce from the regularity of his visits to the wainwright, the sleigh-maker, and a couple of different moneylenders in town. (One could see a lot from a castle tower.) But she didn't really want to get into all that with Hildy—at least not while they were in public.

"He's just kind of a bargain hunter," Anna finished lamely. "So...what are you going to wear tonight?"

"Well, I was a little slow getting in my spring ball gown order with Helga, so it isn't ready yet. Maybe that's just as well; it'll save me twenty minutes of searching the thing for any pins or needles she accidentally left in it."

"Why do you even _go_ to her?" Anna asked.

"She may be a drunk," Hildy replied, "but she's the unparalleled master of décolletage. In any case, I'll probably wear my burgundy velvet tonight. A winter gown seems more appropriate for this crappy weather, anyway."

Anna looked at the gray sky, which was turning black toward the south. "No kidding. And it looks like it's going to rain again, too."

"Ugh," Hildy replied, also looking up. "Not the way I was hoping to get wet tonight."

"Do you say these things just to make me uncomfortable?"

"No, I say them to try to help you bust out of that princess-prison you've been locked in your whole life."

"Excuse me? I've been out of princess-prison since last summer."

"The one in the castle, yes. The one in your head, not so much."

"What do you mean by that?" Anna protested.

"You're totally afraid to open up. And I don't just mean that in a physical sense. Have you ever even said the L word to Kristoff?"

"Why would I say 'lesbian' to Kristoff?"

"Wait—are you messing with me?"

"Of course I'm messing with you. I wouldn't even know that word if you hadn't taught it to me."

"What I mean is, have you ever told him that you love him? Because I'm pretty sure you do."

"Well…not in so many words…"

Hildy slapped a hand to her forehead. "Oh, come on, really? How do you expect this relationship to go anywhere if you pulling back on the reins?"

"Why is that all MY fault?" Anna protested. "He's never said it to me, either."

"Probably because he's afraid you'll run for the hills if he does."

"This…This just isn't a good time to be taking things to the next level," Anna argued. "I've got a lot on my plate right now."

"You're a princess. You're always going to have a lot on your plate. So if not now, when?"

"Can we talk about something else, please?"

"Girl, you're a mess. It's a good thing you've got the Love Goddess looking after you."

Anna rolled her eyes.

"But fine," Hildy continued, "let's talk about the ball. I have to admit, I'm pretty excited about it."

***

"I have never been so bored," said Hildy.

Kristoff looked around. Outside the windows, the rain, which a short while ago had been coming down in buckets, had begun to taper off to a drizzle. Inside, the gigantic floor of the ballroom was only sparsely populated. Apart from Anna, the Queen, and the seven princes and their attendants, only a handful of guests had shown up.

"The weather today's been brutal," the ice-man said, glad to put the focus on something outside the room—he always felt dorky dressing up for these things in his only suit, which was a nondescript dark green. "A lot of the roads are flooded, and even some of the bridges are washed out. I mean, I live pretty close to here, and _I_ barely made it."

"Same here," said Hildy. "I wouldn't expect any of the nobles who live outside of town to show up anytime soon. Not that they're missing much; the princes I've danced with so far have been total disappointments. Especially the one who told me not to get too close because his leprosy was acting up."

"Jeez," Kristoff said.

"And then there's that creepy Herringholtz guy who keeps looking at me," Hildy added.

"Hildy," Anna said to her friend, whose burgundy velvet dress was showing Hildy's customary acre of cleavage, "when men look at you, all it means is that they're not blind or dead." Then she turned to Kristoff. "Is Sven okay out there?"

"Yeah," Kristoff said. "The stable hands were nice enough to take him in for the evening."

The orchestra began playing a waltz, and Hildy left the group to "try a couple more items from the prince-buffet," as she put it. Immediately thereafter, Elsa approached, walking rather swiftly, and stopped in front of Anna and Kristoff.

"Hello!" she said with what seemed like forced cheer. "Don't you two look nice? Anna, might I borrow this dapper fellow for a dance?"

"Okay," Anna said, "but try not to step on his feet too much. I just got him those mocha-suede loafers."

Kristoff, seeing a certain degree of desperation in Elsa's eyes, accompanied the Queen—who looked resplendent as always in a pale-blue ball gown—onto the open ballroom floor. Kristoff noticed a couple, Lord and Lady Something-or-Other, eying him with disdain as he took Elsa's hand for the dance. At least they weren't giving him the dagger-eyes that they and some of the other nobles tended to aim at him when they saw him with Anna.

"You doing okay?" Kristoff asked Elsa as they started to dance the most basic version of the waltz. Neither of their respective upbringings had given them a great deal of experience with formal partner dancing.

"Things just keep finding ways to go wrong," Elsa said. "The fact that we're having the worst rainy season in thirty years is just the flavorless gray icing on this underbaked cake of an event."

"Geez, quit holding back and tell me how you really feel," jibed Kristoff.

"I feel especially bad for the attendants," Elsa said. "They've hardly got any locals to socialize with, and I think they've run out of things to say to one another."

Kristoff glanced over at the seven attendants, who were scattered among a few of the round tables at the edge of the dance floor. Indeed, every one of them had the weary look of the terminally bored.

"Poor guys," Kristoff agreed. "Hanging out with royalty does have its downsides." Then, quickly, he added, "I didn't mean-"

"It's all right," Elsa said. "I know there are some in the nobility who don't approve of your relationship with Anna. And I don't doubt there are some commoners who have a problem with it, as well."

"You could say that," Kristoff replied. "But…I don't want to dump my problems on you. You've got enough to deal with." Then, attempting a more cheerful tone, he said, "So, anybody in the batch of princes look promising?"

Kristoff sensed that Elsa was suppressing a sigh when she said, "Not so far."

"That bad, huh?" Kristoff said, looking at the princes, who were variously talking and dancing with the few local nobles who had managed to show up. "Yeah, I could see how the one with the stilts might not make the best dance partner."

"And he's far from the worst of them. That Prince Rajiv…oh, he drives me insane. Talk about your Prince-Anything-but-Charming."

***

"You, sir, are really quite charming," Hildy said to Rajiv as he artfully twirled her and then brought her neatly back into the frame of his arms in time with the music.

"You are very kind," the prince responded. "As are many of your fellow Arendellans, I am finding."

"Arendelle's kind of at the ass-end of the world," Hildy replied, making Rajiv chuckle, "but the people are pretty great. Including our Queen, I hope you've noticed."

"Yes, well," Rajiv said awkwardly, "I'm sure she is, ah, an excellent ruler."

Hildy seemed to pick up on the halfheartedness of Rajiv's compliment.

"You know," she said, "a lot of people think that because she's literally an ice queen, she must be one figuratively, too. But she's not like that at all. You know how most kings and queens always have their personal physician within shouting distance? Anna says the Queen's doctor isn't even in the castle half the time, because Her Majesty is always sending him out to treat sick kids in the provinces. Man, and when she heard that Big Elk Village was about to be flooded last month—well, you never saw anybody in a royal robe ride that fast. She got there just in time and saved everybody."

"I'm sure she is a fine person," Rajiv replied. "I simply do not think she and I are…compatible."

"Oh, you're not into sweet, intelligent, powerful women who fill out a ball gown very nicely?" Hildy rebutted. "Look, I know I hardly know you, but talking to you right now, I think you and she might be more 'compatible' than you think."

The song ended just as Rajiv was about to reply, whereupon Hildy curtsied and said, "If you'll excuse me" before heading back to where Anna was standing.

***

Anna peered out the window. "Well, at least the rain has stopped."

Suddenly, Kristoff's head whipped from one side to the other as he glanced around the room. Then he said, "Hey—how about we ditch the princes and go have some fun?

"What?" said Anna. "We can't do that. I'm one of the hosts."

"Your sister and Baron Fishface have everything under control, and I was thinking we could take the attendants out somewhere," Kristoff continued. "Those guys could use a break. And it'd be good for international relations, right?"

Anna shrugged. "I'll buy that. And whatever you have in mind, it's got to be more fun than this ball. I'll see if Hildy and any of her friends want to come."

Just as Hildy rejoined Anna, Kristoff walked over to where Dr. Montalvo sat. The man appeared to be wincing as he watched Prince Javier ask the local nobleman with whom he was chatting to feel his forehead to see if he had a fever.

"Doc," said Kristoff, "you feel like getting out of here and doing something fun?"

In one rapid exhale, the man replied, "Oh dear God in heaven yes."

Kristoff went around to several of the other attendants, all of whom firmly embraced Kristoff's plan. After Mofa accepted his invitation, Kristoff checked with Prince Hypatios' attendant, Lord Otos, who was standing nearby.

"Otos, you in?"

The man sighed. "I would dearly love to," the man said sadly, "but given Prince Hypatios' age, I really shouldn't leave him unattended."

Kristoff patted him on the shoulder. "You're a good man, Otos. How about we bring you back a beer and a couple of barbecued moose ribs?"

"Sir, you are a true gentleman," the Dianisian lord replied gratefully.

***

Kristoff, in an effort to protect his only good suit from sweat and reindeer fur, had come in his ice wagon, rather than on Sven's back. This now proved doubly fortunate, because he was able to give the attendants a lift. Halfdan, the only attendant to have come by land rather than sea, volunteered his horse to be hitched up next to Sven, thereby providing sufficient power to pull the wagon and its seven passengers. Kristoff couldn't tell whether Sven felt relieved or insulted.

Anna had told Kristoff to go on ahead with the attendants. She, Hildy, and any friends they managed to persuade to join them would borrow a carriage and driver from the castle's stable.

Ajay had split from the group when they first departed the banquet hall, saying that he wanted to retrieve something from his room and that he would meet them outside. Now, as Kristoff finished harnessing Halfdan's horse to the wagon, the big, turbaned Sundaran reappeared with a medium-sized barrel under his arm.

"Party supplies, eh?" said Kristoff.

"Indeed," Ajay replied with a smile, but he said nothing more.

"So where are we going?" Mofa asked.

"A little place I know in the hills," Kristoff replied. "The owner and I kind of got off on the wrong foot, but we're pals these days."

The other attendants pretty well filled up the back of the wagon, so Ajay, having arrived last, sat on the bench next to Kristoff. The Sundaran captain was dressed warmly, but he nonetheless clutched himself when a chill breeze arose.

"Is it always freezing cold here in April?"

Kristoff glanced back and saw that most of the other attendants looked similarly chilly.

"Oh, come on," Kristoff teased. "The temperature hasn't been below freezing in weeks. We're in the full bloom of springtime now." Halfdan was the only one to laugh.

The five attendants in the back got to talking among themselves, loudly enough that Kristoff decided to ask Ajay a somewhat delicate question.

"Hey," he said, leaning a bit toward the big Sundaran, "feel free to tell me to go to hell, but... I heard a rumor that you and Prince Rajiv crashed this prince-party."

"Crashed?" Ajay replied.

"You know—came without being invited."

Kristoff thought Ajay might take offense, but the Sundaran just raised an eyebrow.

"Oh-ho," Ajay said. "So that's what Herringholtz was on about."

"What do you mean?"

"The Baron came to our rooms before dinner last night and asked to see the Prince's invitation. He seemed a bit surprised when I showed it to him, even though it was written in his own hand."

"Weird," Kristoff said. "Maybe he's forgetful. Who knows with some of these noble types."

"Mmm," Ajay replied.

They rode on for a while, out of the capital and into the foothills of the West Mountain. Soon they came to a wooden building where warm lamplight glowed through the windows. Kristoff got down from the wagon's driver's seat, unharnessed Sven so he could wander as he wished, then went inside. Bells jingled with the movement of the door.

"Yoo-hoo," a voice called in a sing-song greeting from somewhere among a set of shelves in the back. "Who is there, please?"

"Oaken, my man, it's Kristoff!"

A gigantic man emerged from behind the shelves. He looked at Kristoff and glowered.

" _You_ ," he growled. Then he raised a hand and started toward the ice-man.

END CHAPTER 6


	7. Chapter 7: The Trader

Chapter 7: The Trader

Oaken strode toward Kristoff, the huge man's every heavy footfall thudding against the wooden floor. One hand raised, the trader stopped in front of the ice-man, looming over him like the trunk of a massive tree.

"Please do not leave me hanging, bro," Oaken said in his singsong accent.

Kristoff raised a hand and exchanged a high-five with Oaken. The ice-man tried not to wince at the sting of the impact from the burly trader's hand.

"Hey, big guy," Kristoff said. "How are the husband and kids?"

"Very well, very well, thank you," Oaken replied, nodding. "And how is your redheaded princess?"

"Oh, she's great. In fact, she's coming by later on."

"Wonderful! Now, what can I do for you and your friends?"

"Is the party room upstairs available?"

"Oh yes, yes. With all the rain, there's scarcely been anyone here all day."

Kristoff looked back at his new companions. All of them looked chilly, particularly Ajay and Mofa, who came from the warmest climes.

"Hey guys," Kristoff said, "you want to hit the sauna before the ladies get here?"

"Oh, that sounds magnificent," Mofa replied. There were nods of agreement from the others.

Oaken supplied them all with big, white towels, and soon the seven men were seated on the smooth teakwood benches of Oaken's sauna, breathing in the steam.

"Oh, this is most relaxing," said Mofa.

"The sauna is one of Nordland's great contributions to Scandinavian life," Halfdan said proudly. Kristoff was fairly sure the sauna had been invented in Arendelle, but in the interest of international relations—and not starting a fistfight in a small, steam-heated space while more or less naked—the ice-man said nothing.

"Aye," replied Hamish, Prince Gormal's attendant. "'Tis far better than your pickled fish." Halfdan scowled.

Dr. Montalvo was the only attendant who didn't seem to be enjoying the sauna. Taking a gasping breath, he said, "In Hermosa, I believe this would be considered a form of torture."

Ajay laughed. "In Sundara, this would be considered an average Tuesday."

The bearded captain raised a hand to wipe some sweat from his eyes, and Kristoff noticed a big patch of white on the otherwise deep-brown skin of Ajay's forearm.

"That's quite a scar you've got there, Captain," the ice-man said.

Ajay frowned momentarily, then chuckled. "A sailor should never get so drunk," he said, "that he looks at the forge of the ship's blacksmith and says, 'How hard can it be?'" As the others laughed, he added, "And please, call me Ajay."

They sat in the steam for several more minutes—even Dr. Montalvo, who seemed determined to stick it out. Kristoff, who had never thought of himself as the social type, found himself somehow facilitating a lively conversation among these six men who previously had seemed to have nothing to say to one another. Then came a tap on the sauna door.

"Yoo-hoo," Oaken called. "I see a carriage coming up the hill. I think it must be your lady friends."

"All right, fellows," Kristoff said, "time to make ourselves presentable."

***

Back at the ball, Elsa was attempting to make conversation with Prince Varek, but without his attendant there to interpret, it was proving to be an impossible task. Elsa felt a spike of annoyance at Anna and Kristoff for taking Popov away, but she couldn't blame them too much, knowing that Popov's assistance would make Prince Varek's attempts at communication only marginally less opaque.

Out of the corner of her eye, Elsa saw Lord Otos, the only remaining attendant, lean over and whisper something to Prince Hypatios. The boy got up and hesitantly approached the Queen just as the musicians were beginning a new song.

"Um," the young prince began, "may I...have this dance?"

Elsa smiled. "Of course."

Elsa wasn't a great dancer to begin with, and she'd never danced with someone substantially shorter than she. So while she was focusing on putting her left hand in the boy's right, her right hand landed on the boy's back instead of his shoulder. Hypatios gasped.

"Are you all right?" Elsa asked.

"I- I'm fine," the boy said with a weak smile. "When I was on the ship, I tried to climb the, the rigging, and I fell. Lord Otos said it was lucky I landed on my back instead of my head."

"I suppose 'lucky' depends on your point of view," Elsa said. "But I'm glad you weren't seriously hurt."

"Thanks," Hypatios said. Then, as they began to dance, he asked, "Do you really live here?"

Elsa tried to cover up her quizzical expression with a smile as she replied, "Of course I do. I am the Queen, after all."

"This place is just so…big," the boy said.

"Isn't your father's palace in Dianisia even larger than this castle? I've never been there, but I've heard others talk about it."

"Well, yeah, sure, but it's…it's really different."

Elsa was about to ask the prince more about the palace when he suddenly said, "I'm sorry I'm not a very good dancer."

"Oh, that's all right," the Queen replied. "I'm not a very good dancer, either." Then, in a mock-conspiratorial tone, she whispered, "Honestly, if your feet were any bigger, I'm sure I would have stepped on them by now."

The boy smiled.

***

Kristoff and the six attendants exited the sauna—Montalvo taking in the cool air in deep breaths—and went to an area behind it where their clothes, as well as several buckets of clean water, hung on pegs. Each man poured a bucket of water over himself, rinsing off as thoroughly as possible before drying off and getting dressed.

When the men emerged from the back, Oaken informed them that the women had arrived and that he had directed them to the party room upstairs.

"Thanks, Oak," Kristoff said. "You want to come up and hang out with us?"

"Yes, yes, thank you," Oaken replied. "I will help Erik put the children to bed, then I will return directly."

Oaken went out the front door, and Kristoff and the attendants went upstairs to the large room above the shop, where Anna, Hildy, and a few other women awaited them.

"Gentlemen," Anna said with deliberately excessive formality, "how lovely to see you again."

"Although it would have been more lovely to see you twenty minutes ago," Hildy added, earning a subtle elbow-jab from the princess.

Unfazed, the buxom viscountess indicated a tall woman behind her who was perhaps thirty years old. She was wearing a yellow ball gown and, incongruously, a belt from which a longsword hung in a scabbard.

"Kristoff, you remember my stepsister Tilde?"

"Sure," the ice-man said. "Good to see you." Tilde, whose thick braid of white-blonde hair looked like it could be used to strangle an ox, nodded in reply.

"And my friends May and Marit," Hildy continued, indicating two short-haired blonde women in their early twenties who were clearly sisters.

"Hey," they said almost simultaneously.

Hildy approached Montalvo, saying, "So, I hear you're a doctor."

Hearing the hint of seduction in Hildy's voice and watching her take Montalvo aside to chat, Anna mumbled, "Oh, boy."

Ajay appeared at the top of the stairs, holding under his arm the small barrel he had brought along.

"I have here a little something from my homeland," he said, "for those who would care to try it."

May and Marit quickly found some tankards in a cupboard and brought them over to where Ajay had set the barrel. The Sundaran captain filled one and held it out to Kristoff.

"For our host," Ajay said.

Accepting the mug with an expression of mild skepticism, Kristoff said, "I'm sure it's nice, but everyone knows you can't brew a truly great beer without ice-cold water from the first snowmelt of the year."

He took a sip, and his eyes widened.

"Holy…This is _good_. What IS this stuff?"

Ajay smiled. "It is called a Sundara pale ale," he explained. "It was not actually invented in Sundara, but it WAS perfected there."

Ajay began filling mugs for the others in attendance. Halfdan, not to be outdone, pulled out a large flask of Nordlandic firewater and passed it around. Encouraged by Halfdan's example, Hamish was soon sharing his somewhat smaller flask of whiskey, and Popov produced a bottle of Rekyan vodka. Soon, conversation was flowing as easily as the booze.

"You know," Hildy said to Anna, holding her mug of SPA with one hand and Dr. Montalvo's hand with the other, "you told me that the first time Kristoff and Oaken met, Oaken literally threw Kristoff out on his face. How come they seem to be pals now?"

"Oh, Kristoff came back and helped Oaken build a little ice house out behind the trading post," Anna explained. "Now Oaken can sell cold drinks all summer long."

"Did I hear my name?" the huge trader said as he ascended the stairs to the party room. Then he held up a tubular wooden object. "I have brought a flute for the playing of festive music."

Oaken began to play an Arendellan folk song, and it didn't take much to get Anna, Hildy, May, and Marit singing along.

"This reminds me," Kristoff said in a whisper to Ajay. "Last summer, when the whole surprise-winter thing happened, there were a bunch of times when people just started breaking into song for no reason. Even I did it. Does that ever happen where you're from?"

"My boy, you have no idea," Ajay replied, patting Kristoff on the shoulder.

A moment later, Kristoff said, "Well, if you can't beat 'em…I'll be right back."

Kristoff went downstairs and quickly returned with his lute. Oaken had finished his song, so Kristoff started in on a lively jig to which some of the ladies and attendants danced with varying degrees of skill. Then he moved on to a classic Arendellan ballad, to which everyone who knew the words sang along.

Soon there was a nearly nonstop flow of singing and dancing. May and Marit led the group in a song in the round, after which Mofa managed to teach the group a sort of harmonious choral song from his homeland. Ajay introduced everyone to a couple of Sundaran sea chanties and allowed the ladies (led by Hildy) to convince him that it was perfectly all right to include the more ribald verses.

After a while, Kristoff and Anna found themselves dancing together—rather more closely than castle ballroom decorum would have allowed. The feel of Anna's body against his, along with the off-color songs and the alcohol, were making Kristoff feel a bit stirred up.

"Hey," he said in a low voice, "you want to go downstairs?"

"Downstairs?" Anna said. "But everyone's up here."

"Exactly," Kristoff replied with a little grin.

"Ohhh," Anna said, nodding. "Yes, downstairs might be nice."

Hand in hand, they went down the wooden stairs to the first floor, only to hear the gasps, urgent murmurs, and lips-smacking sounds of two people furiously making out behind a tall shelf in the back.

"Hildy," Anna muttered, rolling her eyes.

"How about we go outside?" Kristoff whispered.

They went to the front of the shop, and Kristoff opened the door. As princess and ice-man stepped outside, they heard two simultaneous gasps from the back of the shop, followed by Hildy moaning, "Ooooooh, the doctor is _in_."

Outside, Kristoff brought Anna to a spot just outside the circle of light made by the lantern hanging near the door. The only sounds were the tiny splashes made by raindrops that dripped here and there from the trees.

They moved in close, Anna raising her head and Kristoff lowering his for a light kiss. They kissed again, and again, the kisses growing longer and stronger, and soon it was just one long, continuous kiss as they embraced and brought their bodies fully together. Their hands moved over each other's backs, slowly at first, then with increasing ardor as their passions flared.

As their kisses grew deeper and more intense, Kristoff's hands began to move around to Anna's front.

"Wait!" Anna gasped, her whole body tensing and pulling away from him. "I'm not- We- We shouldn't-"

His frustration unbearable, Kristoff shouted, "Anna, I'm not Prince Hans!"

The instant the words came out of his mouth, he knew they were the wrong ones.

"I KNOW!" Anna shouted back.

They stood there, panting and staring at each other. Kristoff knew there was nothing he could say now that would help. He would just have to wait, enduring her angry glare, to see what she would say or do.

After almost a full minute, Anna spoke.

"I know," she said, "I know you're not Prince Hans. But…you do keep secrets from me."

It didn't take long for Kristoff to figure out what Anna was talking about. There were only two secrets that he kept from Anna, and he didn't think she would be this upset about the book of artistic prints—titled "Babes and Sleighs"—that he kept under his bed.

"You're talking about my debts," he said.

"Yes. Why do you owe so much money? And why would you hide that from me?"

Kristoff took a deep breath and began, "Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted to be an ice-man. I would see those guys—those big, strong, fearless guys—go out there on the frozen lake with their saws and picks and pull up these blocks of something magical. And I wanted to be like them, to handle and tame that magic the way they did. So as soon as Mama Bulda said I was old enough, I went out and got started. But…starting an ice business by yourself isn't very smart."

"Then why did you do it?" Anna asked.

"It- It wasn't my original plan," Kristoff explained. "I tried to get my start the way most ice-men do, by joining a crew. And I was pretty excited about it, working side by side with eight other guys, mostly experienced fellows who I hoped could teach me a few things.

"But after starting life with no parents and then being adopted by trolls—who, as you know, don't have a real good grasp of what humans consider appropriate—I didn't have a lot of social skills. One day, I just said the wrong thing to somebody, and the next thing I knew I was in a fistfight. And then I was fired.

"So I decided to go solo. I didn't have any money for a sleigh, or tools, or a place to live, but I had Sven, and I was willing to work as hard as I needed to. And I foolishly thought that would be enough, because I'd been raised by people who, if they found a bag of gold coins, would probably use them to play tiddlywinks. I never considered that it might be a bad idea to take on a mound of debt to go into a business where a cooler-than-average summer can mean no profits for the whole year."

There was no anger in Anna's voice when she asked, "Why did you feel like you couldn't tell me about all this?"

"I don't tell anyone about it," Kristoff replied. "It looks bad enough that you're dating a commoner; what would people think if they knew you were dating a commoner with money problems?"

Before Anna could answer, Kristoff went on, "And…I was embarrassed. It's like my whole career has been one bad decision after another. And I wasn't sure that…that you'd want to be with someone who had such lousy judgement."

Anna's eyes looked watery as she replied, "How could you think that? Especially when you know that MY lousy judgment almost destroyed the kingdom?"

"Anna, you've got to quit punishing yourself for that!" Kristoff said, louder than he'd meant to. "You made ONE mistake, and it was to believe a man who said he loved you. And that's an easy thing to believe, because…it- it just is," he finished, his eyes downcast.

Suddenly, Kristoff and Anna's heads whipped around toward the sound of the trading-post door bursting open. The ice-man was astonished to see Ajay and Tilde storming out the door, then turning to glare at each other—and then, to Kristoff's horror, drawing their swords.

"Oh, no," he whispered to no one in particular. "It's turned into _that_ kind of party."

END CHAPTER 7


	8. Chapter 8: The Swordswoman

Chapter 8: The Swordswoman

Anna saw Tilde begin to raise her sword. Anna was about to hurry toward her and Ajay, hoping to prevent a deadly duel, when Tilde halted her movement to hold the weapon at about chest height.

"Look at this blade!" Tilde demanded, extending the flat of her sword toward Ajay. "This is Arendellan steel, made from case-hardened Nordlandic iron. You can see from the colors in the metal that it's been tempered to perfect resiliency. There is no better steel in all of Europe!"

"Temper is hardly the issue!" Ajay retorted.

Just loudly enough for Kristoff to hear, Anna murmured, "Oh, I think it is."

Other party guests began to emerge from the trading post, stopping to watch the conflict from a safe distance.

"Case hardening," Ajay continued, "only carbonizes the outer surface of the iron bars, making the strength of the steel uneven." Then, lifting his own blade, he said, "Now this—this is Sundaran crucible steel. The iron is melted and the carbon mixed into the molten metal, strengthening it through and through. There is no better steel in all the _world_."

Seemingly unswayed by Ajay's words, Tilde replied haughtily, "Then I propose a test. We strike our swords together crosswise, edge to edge, and we see which blade comes out the better."

"Very well," Ajay growled, raising his sword up above his right shoulder. Tilde did the same.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Anna cried, running up to them. "This is totally unsafe! What if a piece of steel flies off and hits one of you in the head? You should at least be wearing helmets!"

By now, all of the other guests save Hildy and Dr. Montalvo were outside, most of them standing in a group near the trading-post door. From among them, Halfdan stepped forward and held up a large leather travel bag he had brought with him.

"I can lend you a helmet," he said. "Prince Hjalmar always makes me carry a spare."

Oaken, turning toward the door of the trading post, added, "And I'm sure I have one or two in the Lost and Found."

Moments later, Ajay and Tilde were each wearing an ill-fitting but, Anna hoped, adequately protective helmet. Again, they raised their swords.

"If you would care to count to three," Tilde growled.

"Very well," Ajay replied, hands tightening around the grip of his sword. "One… two… THREE!"

They swung their blades mightily. Ajay was the stronger of the two, but Tilde was clearly the better-trained sword fighter, putting the strength of her entire body into the swing. As a result, the blades struck each other with equally massive force.

In the moment, it was almost impossible to see what happened, but a mere second later, the aftermath told the complete story. There Tilde stood, a suddenly truncated sword in her hand, staring at a spot on the ground a few feet ahead and to her left, where the topmost fifteen inches of her blade now lay among the pine needles.

"I don't believe it," Tilde said—not in denial, it seemed to Anna, but in genuine surprise.

Anna's eyes turned to Ajay. His getting into a loud argument with a woman he had only known for a couple of hours hadn't done much for Anna's opinion of him. But now, he wasn't gloating, or shouting in triumph, or holding up his blade to show everyone that it was still whole. Instead, he had removed his helmet and simply stood there inspecting his sword, which had been barely nicked in the clash. Anna thought that perhaps he wanted to let Tilde be the first to speak.

"It seems I stand corrected," the woman said, clearly struggling to be graceful in defeat.

"Mmm," Ajay said, nodding slowly. "But it also seems that I owe you a sword."

"What?" Tilde replied, looking puzzled.

"Regardless of the reason," Ajay said, "I would never damage another's weapon without making restitution."

Then, inverting his own sword and grasping it by the base of the blade, he held it out handle-first to Tilde.

"This sword is yours, my lady."

Tilde's look of disbelief grew as she said, "You're…You're giving it to me?"

"I do not deny that I shall miss it," Ajay replied. "It has served me well for many years. But the sting of its loss is lessened by the knowledge that I am delivering it into such skilled hands as yours."

The wheels of Anna's mind turned as she deduced what was going on here. Ajay, having won the argument and had a minute to calm down, must have realized what a terrible blunder he had made in getting into a row with the daughter of the Master of the Royal Armory—a man whose opinion, Ajay no doubt knew, would carry considerable weight in the decision whether Arendelle should begin trading for Sundaran steel. But now Ajay saw an opportunity, not only to repair the damage, but to forward his cause by giving Tilde a sample of the type of sword that could be made with that steel. Tilde, in turn, would surely show her father the sword and tell him what she had seen it do.

Anna decided that she would have to revise her earlier conclusion about subtlety not being the Sundaran sailor's forte.

***

Rajiv looked around at the other princes and realized that he was now the only one who had not yet danced with Queen Elsa. He had been putting it off, instead chatting or dancing with some of the other guests. He had talked with Baron Herringholtz, learning that the man was an avid historian, as well as a genealogist and matchmaker; the prince and the baron had each shared what they knew about Rajiv's ancestor, the first King of Sundara. Rajiv had danced with the Minister of the Treasury—not the most fascinating conversationalist, perhaps, but she could polka quite expertly despite her years. And Rajiv had had a particularly nice talk with the affable Duke of Hindebor. When the conversation turned to family, the man had spoken proudly of both his daughter Tilde, who he hoped would one day succeed him as Master of the Royal Armory, and his stepdaughter Hildegard, whom he described as "very clever, if a bit free-spirited" and who had been of great aid to him in the preparation of his various published works. Rajiv wondered to himself if his own father ever spoke of him with such pride.

But the hour was beginning to grow late, and Rajiv could not afford to offend the Queen by avoiding her entirely. As Ajay had said to him earlier that evening as they dressed for the ball, "It is my duty to remind you that even if you have no interest in Queen Elsa, it is your father's will that we do all we can to secure Arendelle as a trading partner. So please...be nice to her. Or civil, at the very least."

The orchestra began a new song, and Rajiv, swallowing, stood up and approached the Queen.

"May I have this dance?" he asked, holding out his hand.

"Certainly," Elsa said with what was obviously forced congeniality.

The dance was an old-fashioned minuet. Rajiv had learned it as part of his courtly training, but it did not appear that Arendellan royals received such instruction, because Queen Elsa scarcely seemed to know the steps. They had not been dancing for even half a minute when she stepped on his foot, nearly tripping him. He managed to hold his tongue but could not help but give her a sharp look as he regained his balance.

"Please forgive me," Elsa said. To Rajiv's ears, the words were devoid of sincerity.

"Certainly," he said coldly, resuming the dance.

They danced in silence for another minute—until Rajiv felt a sharp pain as the toe of Elsa's shoe collided with the base of his shinbone.

"Will you watch your step?" he hissed.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice dripping with irony. "Have I injured you?"

"You have only injured your own dignity," Rajiv growled. "Are you truly so clumsy, or is this a childish attempt to vex me?"

"I'm not the one being childish, you pampered, dandyish, arrogant-"

"I do not need to stand here and be insulted by you!" Rajiv spat, drawing looks from some of the nearby guests. Lowering his voice, he said, "Good evening, your Highness."

Then, walking briskly and drawing further stares, he left.

***

With the fracas over, the guests seemed anxious to keep the party going. Anna, thinking that it might be good if everyone had at least some of their wits about them at the end of the evening, decided to treat them all to some food. At Kristoff's suggestion, she ordered barbecued moose ribs, and Oaken was soon grilling them to order.

Hildy and Dr. Montalvo, looking a bit flushed but smiling contentedly, emerged from the trading post and approached Anna and Kristoff. Anna felt a pang of anxiety as she imagined Hildy opening the conversation by making a poorly veiled remark about her just-concluded activities with the doctor. But the princess realized that her concern was not about the inappropriateness of such a comment, but that it would throw her and Kristoff's aborted attempt at physical intimacy—tonight's, and many others before—into sharp contrast. So Anna decided it would be best if she were the one to start the conversation.

"So," she said to Dr. Montalvo, "how do you think Prince Javier is holding up without you? I hope he hasn't succumbed to consumption or dengue fever because he couldn't get his medicines the instant he called for them."

Anna had meant the comment as a joke, but while Kristoff and Hildy chuckled, Montalvo's expression turned glum.

"They are all placebos, of course," the doctor sighed. "If I gave him real medicines every time he asked, THAT would kill him."

"Why give him anything?" Kristoff asked. "I mean, once he realizes that he won't die if he doesn't get his medicine, won't he snap out of it?"

Shaking his head, Montalvo replied, "I've tried it, more than once. He simply finds some other explanation for his failure to succumb to his many imaginary ailments. His belief in these maladies seems unshakable; it is the only point on which it is impossible to reason with him. I have never been able to determine the cause."

Mofa, apparently overhearing this conversation, chimed in, "It is the same with Prince Sefu's fear of snakes. No matter how many times he opens his wardrobe—which he always does with a ten-foot pole—and finds no snakes inside, I can never convince him that he will find no snakes the _next_ time, either."

"Royals can be quirky, I guess," Anna said.

Within an hour or so, the party began to wind down. As the various guests helped clear up the party room and put their things into the ice wagon or the carriage, Kristoff and Anna washed out the used tankards in a rain barrel out back.

"So," Anna said, "this debt thing…it's getting under control?"

"Thanks to my contract with the Crown, I'm digging my way out of the hole," Kristoff replied. "It was a near thing, though. Before I met you, I was pretty close to having to sell everything and go work at the quarry—or worse, the sulfur mines."

"Well, that's for the best," Anna said. "This is a crummy year for sulfur, anyway."

"What makes you say that?"

"Oh, my reading at the Treasury. The sulfur business is really slow this year."

"Really?" Kristoff said, raising an eyebrow. "Because the mines are still hiring—maybe even more than usual. I see postings on the job board in town all the time."

"That's strange," Anna said. "I wonder-"

"Hey," Hildy said, sticking her head out the back door. "Everyone's ready to go. Kristoff, can I ride with you? May and Marit really want to hear more from Mofa about Mianyokan music, so I offered him my seat in the carriage. Oh, and I think Popov might want to swap with you, Anna; he seemed very interested in talking swordfighting with Tilde."

"I'm okay with it if Tilde is," Anna said, not certain how well the swordswoman's patience would hold up against Popov's broken Arendellan.

***

For the ride back to the castle, Ajay insisted that Anna take his spot on the driver's bench next to Kristoff. Ajay sat right behind them in the bed of the ice wagon.

"That was quite a difference of opinion you and Tilde had, there," Kristoff remarked over his shoulder.

Clearly embarrassed, Ajay replied, "Yes, much in the way that cobras and mongooses can be said to have a difference of opinion."

While Anna chuckled, Kristoff said, "It's mongooses? Not mongeese?"

"Correct," Ajay answered.

"Weird," said Kristoff.

"In your language," Ajay replied, "the plural of 'reindeer' is 'reindeer.' I would say that is weirder."

"What?" Kristoff said. "No, the plural of 'reindeer' is 'reindeers.' Anna, back me up on this."

"Actually, Ajay's right," Anna said.

"You mean I've been saying 'reindeers' in front of you for the past nine months and you've never corrected me?"

"I already correct you on proper ballroom attire and table manners," Anna replied. "If I didn't draw the line at grammar, I'd be a hopeless nag."

Now it was Ajay's turn to chuckle.

***

At Hildy's insistence, Kristoff first headed to the castle to drop off Anna, Ajay, Dr. Montalvo, Hamish, and Halfdan. In the small hours of the morning, there were few sounds besides the hushed conversation of the passengers and the hoof-clops of Sven and Halfdan's horse on the cobblestones.

Suddenly, Kristoff saw a window sash fly open on the second floor of a house they were passing by. A man, his pale head topped with thin white hair, leaned out and looked down at them. His squinting eyes seemed to focus on Kristoff and Anna as he said, "Disgusting."

"What is it, dear?" a woman's voice called from somewhere behind the man.

The man shut the window, but as he moved away from it, Kristoff could clearly hear him say, "The Princess, carrying on with that commoner. A youthful dalliance is one thing, but it's high time she found herself a proper suitor."

"Ugh," Anna said, making a face. "The Count and Countess of Ardegund. They make the term 'nobility' bitterly ironic."

Kristoff dropped everyone but Hildy off at the castle, Ajay promising to deliver to Otos the bottle of beer and paper-wrapped barbecued moose ribs that Kristoff handed him. Then Kristoff headed toward Hildy's home at the edge of the city.

"So," Hildy said, "did you and Anna have fun tonight?"

"Um, yeah," Kristoff answered. "I mean, not as much fun as you and the doc, but-"

"Oh, don't use _that_ as a yardstick," Hildy said. "That was just blowing off steam. What you and Anna have is the real thing."

Kristoff's head dropped as he said, "Yeah. But…I don't know."

"You don't know what? You two are perfect for each other. And you are _so_ in love, even if you're not obvious about it. Once you guys get over your little issues, we're talking happily ever after, here."

"But they're not just _our_ issues," Kristoff said.

"Don't tell me this is about what old Count Limpwick said earlier," Hildy replied. "You can't let a few class-conscious dillweeds get to you."

"If it were just a few, I wouldn't," Kristoff said. "And it's not that I take it personally, exactly. It's just…Anna's an important person. To the whole kingdom, I mean. She's taking on more important responsibilities these days, and then there's the fact that she needs to be ready to take over as queen at any time—even if it's just while Elsa has the flu or something."

"And that bothers you?"

"She needs the respect and the support of the people, and it bothers me that my being with her is interfering with that. I can't help but think she'd be better off finding someone more…appropriate, I guess."

"Shouldn't that be _her_ decision?"

"Anna's too nice to break up with me because I'm bad for her image."

"No, she just knows that that would be a completely stupid reason to break up with you. Give it time; when those noble types get to know you and see what kind of person you are, they'll lighten up."

"Maybe. But why do you care so much?"

"Because Anna's my friend, and I want her to be happy. Besides, they call me the Love Goddess for a reason."

"Does anyone actually call you that?"

"It'll catch on."

END CHAPTER 8


	9. Chapter 9: The Despondent Prince

Chapter 9: The Despondent Prince

As usual, Elsa awoke at first light, yawning and stretching as the pink dawn began to peek through her chamber window. In the quiet, she could just hear Anna snoring two rooms away. The sound made her smile.

Her thoughts turned to the day ahead, and her smile faded. Not because of her regular duties—her Minister of the Interior had come up with an elegant solution to a water-rights dispute between two provinces, and Elsa was looking forward to discussing it with the regional lords this afternoon. But today she would have one-to-one sessions with three more of the princes: the incomprehensible Varek, the boorish Hjalmar, and, to cap things off, the infuriating Rajiv.

For the half-dozenth time, she considered calling the whole affair off. But she knew she couldn't. It would be an insult to the seven royal families who had sent their sons for consideration. Worse, it would feel like quitting. Even though continuing seemed pointless.

Elsa got out of bed. Then, acting on impulse, she crept through the sitting room she shared with Anna, into Anna's bedroom, and up to her bedside.

Anna lay on her back, mouth open, her red hair a crazy tangle around her head. And suddenly Elsa found herself leaning down and gently kissing her sister on the forehead.

There was a break in Anna's snoring. Before the princess could awaken, Elsa hurried quietly away.

***

Kristoff drove his fully laden ice wagon up the stone-paved road toward the castle's rear gate to make his regular semiweekly ice delivery. Sven, for about the dozenth time that morning, snorted irritably at the weight he was having to pull. The reindeer's hormonal moodiness had clearly not abated.

"I know, buddy," the ice-man said, putting a hand to his temple. "It's not the best morning for me, either. And to think, yesterday I woke up wishing I had a hangover."

Approaching the castle's main service entrance, Kristoff saw the manservant Kai waiting at the door, flanked by the two door guards. When the servant caught sight of the approaching wagon, he disappeared into the castle, and moments later, a pair of the castle's porters appeared with trolleys to transport Kristoff's frozen cargo to the castle's ice cellar as it was unloaded.

This task was nearly finished when Kai reappeared—with, to Kristoff's surprise, Baron Herringholtz, wearing his trademark red velvet jacket.

"Ah, Ice Master Bjorgman," the baron said, his long nose pointing at Kristoff like an accusing finger. "I understand you had quite the evening with the princes' attendants last night."

"Look," the somewhat bleary-eyed Kristoff replied, "if this is about ditching out of the ball…or the sword thing...or Hamish puking in Lady Ingeborg's flowerbed on the ride back-"

"There had been plans," Herringholtz interrupted, "to take the princes on an evening cruise of the harbor."

"Oh, yeah," Kristoff said, "cram _those_ guys together on a boat for a few hours. That'll end well."

"It would seem that the princes are similarly dismissive of the idea," Herringholtz replied nasally. "They have asked that _you_ plan the evening's activity instead."

"What? Really" Kristoff blurted. "Well, I...I guess I could do that. What evening are we talking about?"

"This evening."

"Are you kidding me?"

"I am not known for my drollness, Mr. Bjorgman," Herringholtz said. Then, lifting a hand to indicate Kai, the baron continued, "This man will ensure that you are provided with any assistance or resources you may require."

"What about you?" Kristoff asked.

Although it seemed to pain him to do so, the baron replied, "I believe this endeavor will more likely succeed without my participation. So I shall now take my constitutional. Good day, Ice Master."

Kristoff, surprised and lost in thought, only barely noticed two guards emerge from the service entrance and follow Herringholtz at a distance as the baron walked briskly up the street.

***

Olaf hummed to himself as he ambled through the forest. The late-morning sun was streaming through a rare break in the clouds and filtering through the green pine needles above, illuminating the layer of brown ones below.

The snowman was heading in the direction of the castle, hoping to meet some more of Queen Elsa's fascinating foreign visitors. After encountering Rajiv, Prince of Headstands, and that nice little Prince Hyper-Patio two days earlier, Olaf had managed to introduce himself to a couple more of the princes. Admittedly, these introductions hadn't gone quite as well: The prince who wore a skirt, whom Olaf had encountered in a meadow, had shouted at the snowman for ruining his shot at an eight-point buck (whatever that was; all Olaf had seen was a big deer running off into the woods). And when Olaf found the prince with the dark eyebrows and fur hat and tapped him on the shoulder to say hello, the man had spun around, shouted something unintelligible, and beheaded Olaf with his sword. But between low tree branches and startled woodsmen, Olaf got beheaded two or three times a week on average, so the incident had done nothing to dampen his enthusiasm.

Olaf heard the clopping of horse-hooves from the road several yards away. His already buoyant mood was further heightened when he saw who the horse's rider was.

"Anna!" he shouted, running toward her as fast as his short legs and the uneven forest floor would allow. Bursting out of the trees and onto the road, he cried, "Hi, Anna! How are-"

Olaf stopped in his tracks when he saw the state the Princess was in. Her red hair was thoroughly mussed, and she was covered in a layer of fine yellow dust, with thicker smears of it here and there on her black skirt, her green vest, and her face.

"Sheesh, what happened to _you_?" Olaf asked. Then, pulling his carrot-nose off his face, he added, "And why do you smell like old bird's nest?"

"I was at the sulfur mines," Anna grumbled.

"Were you _in_ the sulfur mines?"

"I was reading something printed on the side of a barrel, and the barrel was on top of six other barrels, and the barrels were in the back of a wagon, and apparently nobody over there knows that you're supposed to chock the wheels of a loaded wagon when it's parked!" After a gasping breath, Anna added, "They should all have to date an ice-man for a while."

She looked up at the position of the sun in the sky and continued, "Anyway, I need to get back to the castle and change."

"Oooh, I'm headed that way, too!" Olaf said excitedly. "Can I have a ride?"

"Sure, hop on," Anna replied, patting the space behind her on the horse's back. "Just make sure to stay on the saddle blanket, or the cold might-"

But Olaf was already leaping onto the back of the horse. As he landed, his snowy legs slapped against the horse's flanks, and the beast reared up violently, dumping both Olaf and Anna off its back and onto the road. Anna landed squarely on top of Olaf, his snow-soft body cushioning her landing. Somewhat.

"-spook the horse," Anna groaned.

***

Early that afternoon, Elsa sat down in the parlor, where she had had her interview with Prince Varek only a few hours earlier. The interviews were supposed to be one-to-one, but Varek couldn't make himself understood without Popov there to interpret. Even with the attendant's help, the hour had seemed like two.

Now it was Prince Hjalmar's turn. Gerda, visibly struggling not to look aghast, showed the big, unkempt, helmeted Nordlander into the parlor, then exited and closed the door behind her.

"Please, sit," Elsa said, indicating a chair. The man sat down and removed his helmet, his long, tousled blonde hair spilling around his face.

"I owe you an apology," the prince said.

Elsa's eyes widened slightly. She didn't know what she had expected this man to say, but it wasn't that. Not least because it was a complete sentence.

"I have been acting badly," Hjalmar continued. "On purpose."

"Why?" Elsa said, her brow furrowing.

"I didn't want you to choose me," the man confessed. "I'm…involved…with someone else. Someone my father and mother don't approve of."

Elsa had to suppress a look of curiosity as she said, "May I ask why they don't approve?"

Possibilities scrolled through her mind. The King and Queen of Nordland were notably forward-thinking, so it seemed unlikely that Hjalmar's forbidden love was a commoner, or a member of some minority religious faith, or a man. The daughter of an enemy, perhaps?

"She's a frost giant," Hjalmar replied.

"O- Oh," Elsa said, astonished. "But…I thought frost giants lived far to the north, away from human lands."

"They do," Hjalmar said. "But once in a while, they come down into Nordland's northern provinces, usually looking for sheep or cows to eat.

"Two months ago, word came to the palace that sheep were being slaughtered up in Frystmark Province. My father thought that slaying a giant would be a good way for me to redeem myself after being expelled from the Royal Marines, so he sent me to deal with it.

"Back home, a lot of people think I'm a coward—that my fainting spells are caused by fear, or that I fake them to get out of dangerous duty. So I was glad to have a chance to prove them wrong. I went up to Frystmark, ready to do battle with a massive monster and come back with its head…or not at all.

"But she wasn't massive, and she wasn't a monster. She had the blue skin and black hair they tell of in the tales, but she was barely more than ten feet tall—a dwarf by her people's standards. And when I found her, she wasn't terrorizing a village or ripping people limb from limb; she was just sitting quietly in a meadow, eating a sheep, and I could see that she had snapped its neck cleanly so that it wouldn't suffer. And the next thing I knew, I was sitting next to her on a snowbank, and we were just…talking.

"It was all a misunderstanding. The frost giants always fence in their grazing lands, so when Gnissa—that's her name—saw sheep wandering in the open, she thought they were wild, and free for the taking. She was mortified when I told her they belonged to someone.

Hjalmar took a breath. "That was when I started to realize how special Gnissa was. Not because she was different from other frost giants. It was because, when I listened to her speak, I realized that…that I never wanted to live another day without hearing her voice. Or seeing her face. Or feeling her gentle hand around mine."

The big prince paused, looking at Elsa.

"Your Highness, are you…all right? I didn't mean to upset you."

Only then did Elsa feel the single tear that was sliding down her cheek. She wiped it away, not taking her eyes off of Hjalmar for a second.

"Keep going," she said. "Please. What did you do then?"

"I didn't know what to do. I couldn't just take her to the local village and explain things; the town watches in Frystmark have standing orders to shoot frost giants on sight. And I knew that seeing anyone attack Gnissa would make me furious, and then she would have to fend for herself while I lay passed out in the snow.

"So I lied. I told the local council that I was still looking for the giant, when I was secretly going to meet with her in the forest, every day for weeks. I was the happiest I've ever been in my life.

"It couldn't go on forever, though. We talked about running away, to make a home together in the empty space between the human and frost giant lands. But I knew that wouldn't work; if I just disappeared, the King and Queen would send troops to find me, or at least my dead body. And then Gnissa would be in danger.

"So I went back home alone. And after the courtiers had their chance to scoff at my story and whisper about how I probably hadn't even tried to find the giant, I went to my mother in private and told her the story.

"I thought she would be sympathetic. But I didn't know how much she hated the frost giants. And I didn't expect that even though I'd asked her not to, she would immediately tell my father.

"He was beyond furious. He didn't tell anyone else—the secret was too shameful—but he wouldn't let me leave the castle grounds. Until, of course, Baron Herringholtz showed up with the invitation to come here. Then the King was happy to let me go, with Halfdan to keep an eye on me."

Elsa was literally on the edge of her seat as she asked, "Where is Gnissa now?"

Hjalmar looked down. "Hiding somewhere in the borderlands. She didn't want to go back to the giant lands, because a lot of frost giants really are as bad as people say. But I begged her not to stay in Frystmark. If my parents heard about any more sightings there, they wouldn't send me—they'd send a whole army company."

"But," Elsa began, "why this charade of being a boor? Why not tell me the truth from the beginning?"

"There was never a chance to talk to you privately until now—not without risking being interrupted. And I was afraid you might not keep my secret if you only heard half the story.

"And it wasn't just because of you. Acting like this keeps everyone away." Then, looking down, Hjalmar said, "If I had to talk to other people all the time, it would be harder to…to hide my sadness."

Elsa felt a pang in her chest. She could scarcely believe how much her opinion of Hjalmar had changed in a matter of minutes—so much so that she found herself putting her hand over his. He had been looking down, but now he looked up at her.

"What about Halfdan?" Elsa asked, suddenly self-conscious. "Doesn't he know you're not really like this?"

"I only met Halfdan the day before we left for Arendelle," Hjalmar explained. "He's been a low-ranking diplomat for years, moving from one foreign post to another, until my parents recalled him a few weeks ago. I think being sent here with me is some kind of punishment—I don't know for what."

"I see."

Taking a deep breath, Hjalmar said, "I- I'm sorry to burden you with this. I know you have a lot to do. I should go."

"No," Elsa said, her hand gripping Hjalmar's. "If you leave now, Halfdan will suspect that something is wrong. Stay."

Then, taking her hand off the prince's and looking at him intently, she said, "Tell me more about Gnissa."

For the first time in the three days she had known him, Elsa saw Hjalmar smile.

"She loves birds," he began. "She told me of the owls that live in the giant lands, that glide silently through the darkness despite their great size…"

***

It was late afternoon when Anna returned to the castle. After washing off the sulfur and changing clothes, she had returned to the Treasury to look through some more of the trade records—as well as a few other record books she didn't strictly have permission to see. Now she wanted to talk to her sister about what she had found.

So Anna headed down the main corridor that led to the Queen's parlor. She knew Elsa would have one of her prince-interviews there in a few minutes, so this would be a good time to catch her.

"Anna, hey!" shouted Hildy as she rushed up to the princess and took her elbow. "I was coming by to drop something off for you, but now I can give it to you in person."

"Give me what?" Anna asked, even as Hildy pulled an unsealed envelope out of her purse.

"The Duke has drafted me to help him write his memoirs," Hildy said with an eye-roll, "and while I was digging through his old letters and stuff, I found this one from your mom. She and the Duke were an item for a little while back in their teenage years."

"Oh, yeah, I think I remember her mentioning that once," Anna said. "It's about all I know about her love life before she met my father."

Handing the envelope to Anna, Hildy continued, "So I thought you ought to have this. The Duke has a bunch more from her—they wrote to each other a lot during the summer they were apart—so I'm sure he won't miss one. But I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything to him about it."

"Okay," Anna said. "Um, thanks. But right now, I need to-"

"Anna!" a man's voice shouted from behind her, making the princess turn around.

"Kristoff?" she said. Seeing that the ice-man was in his working clothes, she continued, "What are you doing here? I thought you always made your castle deliveries in the morning."

"I do," Kristoff said. "I've been here ever since. Oh, hey, Hildy." The buxom viscountess smiled and wiggled her fingers in a silent hello.

"Herringholtz," Kristoff went on, "drafted me into planning tonight's activity for the princes. So I wanted to run my plan by you and the Queen."

"I was just going to see her, too," Anna said. "Come on, we can still catch her before-"

"Excuse me, your majesty," said a deep voice from her left. Anna turned and saw the tall, mustachioed Captain of the Palace Guard standing there.

"May I speak with you a moment?" he asked.

"Give me a minute, guys," Anna said to Kristoff and Hildy before taking the captain aside.

"You asked my men to keep an eye on Baron Herringholtz," the man said in a low voice. "So far, they have not seen any obviously suspicious activity. However, this morning, after speaking with the Ice Master, the baron walked out the rear gate, proceeded north up Sill Street to the edge of town, and then entered the forest."

"Did your men follow?"

"No. They did not believe they could pursue without the baron noticing. However, the baron was seen returning to the castle approximately forty minutes later."

Out of the corner of her eye, Anna caught sight of her sister emerging from a doorway down the hall.

"Thank you, Captain," she said hurriedly. "Keep watching the baron. I have to go."

Anna started after Elsa. Kristoff followed; Hildy had already left.

"Elsa, hey," Anna said as they caught up to the Queen. "Do you have a minute?"

"I'm afraid not," Elsa replied. "My interview with Prince Rajiv is at four o'clock."

Anna glanced at a grandfather clock in the hallway and said, "You've still got five minutes."

"Yes, but I want to get to the parlor before he does. Out of courtesy."

"Ohhh, I get it," Anna said. "You want to show that you're better than him by being more punctual."

"What?" Elsa said. "That- That would be petty, and immature, and…exactly what I'm doing," she finished with a sigh.

"It's fine," Anna said, trying not to sound frustrated. "We'll talk to you later."

Anna and Kristoff sat down in two of the four chairs in the hallway outside the parlor, where attendants and servants sometimes waited during the Queen's interviews.

"So, for tonight," Kristoff said, "I've been planning a pub crawl."

"Really?" Anna said skeptically. "Just how much do you think my sister can drink?"

"Don't worry, all the places I picked have non-alcoholic options. One of the princes is an eight-year-old, after all. But I figured that if the idea is for one of these guys to marry Elsa and move to Arendelle permanently, then they ought to see what life here is like for us commoners, as well as the royals and nobles."

"That's…That's a really good idea," Anna said.

"So what was it _you_ wanted to talk to the Queen about?"

"There's something weird going on," Anna replied. "The sulfur mines are producing as much as they ever have, and so are the pine-pitch factories, but a lot of it isn't being exported. In fact, I'm not sure _where_ it's going. Different companies have been buying it up, but from what I saw in some of the Treasury record books, all of those companies were just started sometime in the last year. I need to-"

"Good afternoon," said a familiar voice.

Anna looked up and saw Ajay, clad in his usual maroon turban, arriving with Prince Rajiv. Anna and Kristoff stood up.

"Good afternoon," Anna said, curtsying, smiling, and trying not to think about what kind of disaster might be about to go down in the parlor.

Both men bowed in response. Then Ajay showed Rajiv into the parlor and closed the door behind him. The Sundaran captain let out a breath as he came over to sit with Anna and Kristoff.

"Hey, Ajay," Kristoff said, shaking the man's hand. "Good to see you. Are you actually supposed to sit here for an hour while they talk?"

"My friend," Ajay replied, "if this interview lasts an entire hour, I shall be most pleasantly surprised."

***

Elsa stood up as Rajiv entered, wearing the linen-white uniform he had worn to the Grand Introductions days earlier. She saw Ajay shut the door behind the prince.

"Prince Rajiv," she said, standing to curtsy. She had tried to keep her tone neutral, but even she could hear the ice in it.

"Your Highness," the man replied equally coldly as he bowed.

"I wasn't certain you would make an appearance," Elsa said.

Fire flared up in the prince's eyes. "I am here out of respect for my father's wishes. And common courtesy, which otherwise seems to be in short supply in this room."

"What?" Elsa said, enraged by the absurdity of the accusation. "You have been nothing but rude since the moment you arrived. I don't know what kind of manners they teach to Sundaran princes, but-"

" _I_ have been rude?" the man said, the volume of his voice rising. "You have been superior, arrogant, and as cold as your kingdom's climate!"

"How dare you-"

"Oh, forgive me, I left out vain! Inviting seven princes to compete for you, as though your hand in marriage were some sort of prize!"

Elsa found herself slowly advancing on Rajiv as she replied, "Oh, and I suppose you think of _yourself_ as the prize! You puffed up, egotistical-"

Elsa felt a chill around her hands and gasped as she looked down and saw a layer of ice growing over her balled fists.

"Look what you're making me do!" she cried, holding up her hands and backing away. "Get back before I- I-"

"Oh, I am happy to get as far away from you as I possibly can!" Rajiv shouted, his face now red with fury. "There is NOTHING that could keep-"

Elsa and Rajiv suddenly cried out in unison as Rajiv's entire body burst into flames.

END CHAPTER 9


	10. Chapter 10: The Descendant

Chapter 10: The Descendant

Startled, Elsa cried "What the hell!?" and reflexively backed away from Rajiv, whose body was completely engulfed in fire.

Rajiv dove to the stone floor and rolled, trying to put out the flames. It made no difference—the fire continued to blaze all around him. His clothing was on fire from head to foot, and even the cloth on a table that was several feet away from him began to smolder, so intense was the heat.

The door burst open, and Anna, Kristoff, and Ajay rushed in. The sight of Rajiv swathed in fire stopped them in their tracks.

"Whoa!" Kristoff shouted.

"Oh my God!" Anna cried.

"Oh, no," Ajay nearly whispered.

Moving quickly, Anna snatched a curtain from the nearest window and started toward Rajiv.

"No! Stay back!" the prince cried, even as Ajay put a hand on Anna's shoulder to stop her. "The fire is too hot!"

"Rajiv, stay still!" Elsa shouted. "I can help you!"

She started toward him, but the fire-cloaked Rajiv looked around frantically and then scrambled backward into an empty corner, shouting, "You mustn't come near me! You'll be burned alive!"

Elsa forced herself to calm down. If Rajiv was anything like her, getting him more upset would only make things worse.

"No," she said calmly, "I won't."

Concentrating, Elsa created a zone of cold around herself. Here and there, ice crystals formed from the moisture in the air around her and fell like tiny snowflakes as she walked slowly toward the burning prince.

"No! I cannot stop the fire!" Rajiv cried, raising his hands as if to warn Elsa away. "You _must_ stay back! _Please_!"

"It's all right," Elsa said soothingly, intensifying the cold around her to balance out the growing heat as she approached him. "Fire can't hurt me."

Sure enough, as Elsa came near the Sundaran prince, the flames around him began weaken, dimming from orange to red as they shrank. And when she reached Rajiv and pulled his body against hers, they extinguished entirely.

"It's all right now," she said, putting her arms around him in reassurance. "I've got you."

Rajiv held onto her, panting.

"I- I do not know what happened," Rajiv said. "How can this be?" Elsa felt a hot tear land on her shoulder.

"Oh, my boy," Ajay said, putting his hands to his bearded face. "I am so sorry."

Rajiv blinked hard and looked at Ajay. "What- What are you saying? Do you know something about this?"

"I will tell you everything," the older man said gravely. Then, glancing downward, he added, "After I fetch you some pants."

***

By the time Ajay returned, Anna and Kristoff had left to give Rajiv some privacy. Elsa averted her eyes but remained near the prince in case he again burst into flames—and because, she admitted to herself, she had an intense desire to hear what Ajay knew about Rajiv's condition.

After handing the prince a pair of goatskin-leather pants, perhaps thinking the tanned hide would be more fire-resistant than linen, Ajay began to speak.

"You were barely three years old," he said. "The King and Queen had decided to take you and your brothers and sister on the royal yacht for an afternoon cruise of the bay. I was a young officer then, and I had recently been assigned to the yacht's crew.

"I had put my career aspirations ahead of thoughts of marriage and family, so I had little experience with children, but I found you quite charming. You didn't seem to fuss or get upset at the least thing like many children do. You were just happy to play with your new toy—one of those monkeys that plays the cymbals when you wind it up.

"At some point, after we had cast off and sailed out into the bay, your father began to speak to you and the other children about Sundara's navy and the importance of sea power. But you were completely absorbed in playing with your toy, and you did not seem to hear when your father told you to put it down and pay attention.

"Your father was not accustomed to asking for anything twice. When you did not immediately obey his command, he snatched the toy from your hands and threw it overboard.

"At the time, I was partway up the rigging, checking some lines. But when I heard an ear-piercing cry, I looked down and saw you, red-faced and screaming, pointing over the rail where your toy had gone.

"And then, right before my eyes, you suddenly caught fire. Your entire body was ablaze, as if you had been doused in burning oil. The King shouted and jumped back, and one of the men seized a tarpaulin from a nearby lifeboat and tried to roll you in it to smother the fire. But instead, the tarpaulin burst into flames, and the sailor was forced to flee to avoid being burned.

"By that time, I had climbed down to the deck and started running towards you. A coil of rope near where you were standing had caught fire, and the wooden deck beneath your feet was smoking, as though it might ignite at any moment. I realized that the entire ship was in danger."

Ajay let out a sighing breath. "I did the only thing I could think of. I wrapped my jacket around my arm, snatched you up as quickly as I could, and threw you overboard."

Rajiv looked at Ajay with a mix of guilt and horror. "Your scar..." he whispered.

"As soon as I saw that the water had extinguished the flames, I dove in after you. But the wind was high that day, and even in those few seconds, the ship had moved a good distance away from you. By the time I reached you, you had nearly drowned.

"Afterwards, the King commanded me never to speak of the incident again except with him. I did not understand what had happened, in any case.

"But I knew that it was not your fault. So when your father asked me to spend time with you whenever my duties allowed, I did not hesitate to agree.

"You didn't seem to remember what had happened. Even so, a guru was summoned to the palace the very next day to begin your training in yoga and meditation. Everyone was told that it was meant to help you overcome your fear of the water—which was the truth, if not the whole truth.

"And you never had another incident. Until today."

"Why did he have to suppress this magic?" Elsa asked, more angrily than she had meant. "Why couldn't he have been taught to control it instead?"

"Perhaps he could have," Ajay answered. Shaking his head, he continued, "But no one knew how. Such power had not existed in Sundara for generations."

"Generations?" Rajiv asked. "Then someone...at some time…"

"It is said," Ajay replied soberly, "that the first King of Sundara defended his people with the fire in his heart." Then, with a tone of grave irony, he added, "Most believe this to be a metaphor."

Elsa took a long moment to consider all of this. Then she turned to Rajiv.

"Stay here," she said. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Ajay, come with me, please."

Ajay hesitated for a moment, perhaps loath to leave the prince alone. But he seemed to conclude that Elsa might know better than he how to proceed.

"Certainly, your Majesty," he replied, and followed her out of the parlor.

***

Minutes later, Elsa returned alone, carrying outdoor-appropriate clothes and boots that Ajay had supplied, as well as a few other items.

"Come on," Elsa said, holding the clothes and boots out to Rajiv. "We're going for a hike."

"It is not safe," Rajiv replied. "How do you know that I will not burn your kingdom to the ground the moment we leave here?"

"I'll be with you the whole time. Besides, you've managed to keep your magic under control for the better part of two decades without even knowing you were doing it. I think you can handle it for a few more hours."

"Very well, your Majesty," Rajiv said, pulling on his boots.

"How about we stick with 'Elsa' and 'Rajiv' for now?"

"If you think it best," the prince replied. Then, after a moment, he asked, "But...what is the purpose of this excursion?"

"To help you learn to control this fire magic of yours. Because I believe you _can_ control it."

"Perhaps," Rajiv said uncertainly. "But…why do you want to help me? Me, of all people?"

"Two reasons," Elsa replied. "First, as you said, I can't have you burning my kingdom to the ground."

Rajiv nodded.

"And second," Elsa said, her voice softening, "when you discovered that you couldn't put the fire out, you didn't scream for help, or go running through the halls trying to save yourself. You fled to the corner of the room and told us to stay back, because you didn't want anyone to be hurt. You put everyone else's safety—including mine—ahead of your own.

"Now," she said, pulling a small leather pack onto her back, "let's go. It's going to take a few hours to get where we're going."

"I could carry that for you, if you like," Rajiv replied.

"This is our dinner," Elsa replied. "And I'd prefer that it not be accidentally overcooked. But here," she said, handing Rajiv a full waterskin. "You can carry this. And, just to be safe…"

She touched the skin with her fingers, and the water inside froze solid.

"Fair enough," Rajiv said, and followed Elsa out of the parlor.

***

They went out the castle's rear gate, Elsa signaling the guards and other personnel to give her and Rajiv a wide berth. Then they entered the forest.

"The woods are completely waterlogged from the rain," she assured Rajiv. "And this is the most direct way to the North Mountain."

"A mountain?"

"Yes. Are you up for that?"

"I have climbed many mountains, in my country and elsewhere. The view from a mountaintop can be quite conducive to inner peace."

Inner peace wasn't what Elsa had in mind, but she decided not to say anything about that just yet.

They walked through the forest for nearly an hour. During that time, Elsa told Rajiv the story of her powers and the events that resulted from her limited ability to suppress them—her isolation from Anna and the rest of the world, her disastrous coronation day, and Anna's rescue of her on the icy fjord. Rajiv, seeming to want to make the exchange of information even, told her about his youth, his studies of yoga and meditation, and his many travels—on foot and horseback in the mountains, and on the seas with Ajay.

The sun set as they hiked. For once, the sky was clear, and the moon lit their path as they emerged from the forest at the base of the North Mountain. Elsa quickly spotted the path she had taken nine months earlier; it was much easier to find without a layer of snow to obscure it.

As they began their ascent, Rajiv said, "I…I wish to confess something."

"All right," Elsa replied.

"At the welcome banquet, when you made that remark about my naval rank, you…touched a nerve. I have never used my royal status to advance my naval career, but I know that my father has done so on my behalf, against my express wishes."

"Parents can be like that," Elsa said. "Sometimes, what they think is best for you just…isn't."

"In any case, I overreacted, and I apologize. For that, and…many other things."

"I want to confess something, too," Elsa said. "At the ball, what you said about my dancing-"

"-for which I also apologize," Rajiv interrupted.

"No, you were right," Elsa said. "I'm a terrible dancer. I never had much talent for it to begin with, and…well, for a long time, it was dangerous for me to touch anyone. So…no dancing lessons. And even though I can control my powers now, I don't have much time to practice."

Rajiv nodded pensively. "It seems we are quite adept at finding each other's sore points."

"Mmm," Elsa replied, nodding, and they continued their climb.

***

Kristoff and Anna walked into the main entrance hall, where all of the attendants and all the princes save Rajiv had assembled for the evening's event. Hildy had reappeared, as well, her hair now up in a cascading coif that took as much advantage of her natural dark curls as her low-cut black evening gown did of her other notable physical assets.

"Hey, Hildy!" Anna said. After the day she'd had, it was nice to see Hildy's friendly face again. "Your hair looks amazing."

"Why, thank you," Hildy said, tossing her curls artfully.

"Not that it doesn't always look great," Anna added.

"Yeah, well, my gift from the Bohemian side of the family," Hildy said.

Over the many months of their friendship, Anna had noticed that Hildy, although candid to a fault about other aspects of her life, rarely spoke about her biological father. Anna figured it was a sore subject and had decided not to pry; if Hildy ever wanted to talk about it, Anna would let her begin that conversation.

"I guess," Hildy continued, "I'm lucky to be living in a kingdom where blondes and redheads are a dime a dozen, and brunettes are the exotic beauties." Anna chuckled.

"So," Anna said to Hildy in a mock-whisper as the two women and Kristoff walked toward the waiting group of princes and attendants, "are you crashing our pub crawl?"

"I was going to," Hildy replied, "but then your big blonde boyfriend ruined everything by _inviting_ me." She gave Kristoff a playful smack upside the back of his head, making the ice-man grin.

As they met the group of princes, Anna saw Prince Varek whisper something to Popov.

"Night of prettiness, High One," Popov interpreted to Anna.

"Yes, good evening, your Highness," Prince Sefu said, bowing from atop his stilts. "I have been looking forward to this opportunity to see more of your fair city, and to spend time with you and the Queen."

"I'm afraid I have some bad news," Anna said, speaking loudly enough for everyone to hear. "The Queen won't be able to join us this evening."

"Same goes for Prince Rajiv," Kristoff added. "Sorry, everybody."

"Finally killed each other, have they?" the kilted Prince Gormal said offhandedly. Hamish gave him a sharp look.

"They are unavoidably detained," Ajay said, his tone indicating that this was a statement of fact that would require no further discussion. Anna figured this was a skill a navy captain would develop by necessity, and considered that it probably wouldn't hurt for a princess to learn it, too.

Lord Otos, who had been standing with the young Prince Hypatios, now approached Ajay.

"If I may ask," he said carefully, "how long did Prince Rajiv's interview with the Queen last?"

"If you must know," Ajay replied, frowning, "probably no more than three minutes."

"Ha!" cried Mofa, who this evening was clad in a festive orange shuka and a matching circular hat. Then, extending his open hand toward the other attendants, he said, "Pay up, gentlemen."

As the other attendants began digging into their pockets and purses, Ajay said, "You wagered on how long the interview would last? I hope at least one of you bet on the full hour."

"I'm afraid," Otos replied, "that mine was the longest time, at twenty-five minutes." Sighing, he added, "I don't know what I was thinking. Ah well, as King Aegeus is known to say, 'Plan for success, but be prepared for failure.'" Otos then opened the leather purse that hung from his belt and fished out a few silver coins to hand to Mofa.

"So…" Halfdan began, addressing Anna and Kristoff, "what are we to do now?"

"Well," Kristoff said, "you guys want to go anyway?"

Prince Hjalmar grunted in what Anna thought might have been the affirmative.

"The day a prince of Lainn refuses a friendly drink," said Prince Gormal, "will be the first day of the End Times."

Anna looked around, and it seemed as though everyone were in agreement.

"All right then," Kristoff said, clapping his hands and rubbing them together. "First, I'd like to introduce you fellows to a classy little place called the One-Eyed Wharf Rat."

"Which, disappointingly enough," Hildy said as they all started out the door, "is not a penis metaphor." She leaned toward Anna. "I asked the owner."

"Of course you did," Anna sighed.

***

Elsa and Rajiv climbed about three-quarters of the way up the mountainside, stopping when they reached a wide plateau that overlooked the castle and the adjacent port.

"This," she told Rajiv, "is where I went after my powers got out of control on my coronation day. I wanted to isolate myself, for the safety of everyone."

Rajiv nodded. "You are always thinking of your people. I have heard this from many who know you."

Not wanting to get sidetracked, Elsa continued, "But there was another reason I came up here…something I needed to do. Something you need to do now."

"What is that?"

Elsa looked Rajiv in the eye. "Let it go."

Rajiv looked back quizzically. "Let what go?"

"Fear...anger...frustration—everything you've been bottling up or tamping down."

"But, your M- Elsa, what if...what if I-"

"You can't do any harm. Nothing grows up here, not even in the spring. And I'm the one person fire can't hurt."

Rajiv held up his hand and gazed at it, still uncertain.

"Start slowly if you need to," Elsa prompted.

Rajiv stared at his hand for several moments. And then, like a candle being lit, a tiny flame sprang up in his palm.

"Good," Elsa said. "Keep going. Let your feelings fuel the fire."

"My father," Rajiv said, staring at the flame in his hand, "always seemed anxious to keep me at a distance."

The flame grew, filling Rajiv's hand.

"After my family received the invitation to send me to Arendelle," the prince said, "I overheard my father telling my mother that this was a great opportunity. At the time, I thought he was talking about having me bring Sundaran steel to your kingdom."

The flames spread, surrounding Rajiv's hand as they grew brighter. Then, carefully, the man extended his arm toward a point on the ground several feet away.

"So I did not understand why his words seemed to upset my mother. But now, _now_ I know—he was talking about the opportunity to get _rid_ of me!"

The flame shot from Rajiv's hand and struck the rocky ground, flaring up and then dissipating.

"That's it," Elsa said. "Let it out."

"My entire life," Rajiv said angrily, "he was always sending me away—to meditate in the mountains, or to sail with Ajay. He said he was trying to build my character, but I always knew there had to be another reason. He was just keeping me out of his palace, out of his kingdom—out of his life!"

Another gout of flame burst from Rajiv's arm, exploding against the ground.

"He was afraid of me!" Rajiv cried, loosing another gout of fire, then another. " _Ashamed_ of me!"

A tear escaped the prince's eye as he shouted, "And now he sends me as far away as he possibly can, in the hope that I will _never_ _come back_!"

Rajiv looked upward, and with a cry that seemed to contain rage and anguish and terror all at once, he unleashed an immense column of fire into the sky.

Then, breathing hard, the man half sank, half fell to his knees. Elsa went to his side, kneeling next to him but giving him space to breathe and think and cope.

After a minute, Rajiv looked at her.

"I had no idea what- what was inside me," he said, his voice shaking.

"It's hard to see what we have inside until we let it out," Elsa said, "and look at it in the light of day."

"But…" the prince said, "now that I know...what do I _do_ with it?"

"When I first came up here," Elsa said, "I built an entire castle out of ice, just to see if I could. You need to see what _your_ power can do."

Rajiv looked despondent. "One cannot build a castle with fire," he said grimly. Looking at the ground, he added, "Fire can only destroy."

"We'll see," said Elsa. "You sent that last blast into the air; see what you can do with that."

Rajiv raised his hand and sent a thin spout of fire into the air. Then, nodding to himself, he swept his other arm up, creating a larger, higher plume.

"Come on," Elsa said. "If your power is anything like mine, you can make something a lot more complex than that."

Rajiv tried again, managing to create a crude circle in the air, then a rough square.

"Don't try to force it," Elsa counseled. "Fire is like ice—it has natural shapes it takes, ways it moves. And so does your mind. Just try letting them do what they want to do."

Rajiv inclined his head and closed his eyes. Elsa watched him, waiting.

Suddenly, eyes still closed, he threw both arms straight up. Twin gouts of fire shot upward from his hands and flew perhaps fifty feet into the air before they burst outward, forming a huge circle that contained a figure in the shape of a lotus flower. The symbol rotated slowly, fiery orange against the black night sky.

"What...What is it?" Elsa asked, gaping as she stared upward.

Rajiv opened his eyes and looked up, and it seemed that he scarcely believed what he saw.

"It's...a mandala," he gasped. "I sometimes use them in my meditation. This one...among other things...is a symbol of peace."

"It's beautiful," Elsa said.

Rajiv suddenly turned to her.

"Elsa, I...I cannot apologize enough for my behavior towards you, when you have been so-"

"Stop," Elsa said. "I was just as horrible to you. So let's agree that we're sorry and consider all apologies offered and accepted."

Rajiv smiled at her weakly. "You are very wise. But what made us behave this way?"

"I suppose," Elsa said, "that our having opposite…elements…inside us made us see each other as enemies."

Rajiv took a deep breath and looked Elsa in the eye.

"You are not my enemy, Queen Elsa of Arendelle," he said. "You are an exceptional person. And I am not speaking of your powers."

Elsa smiled.

"You have helped me so much, just in the past few hours," Rajiv continued.

"I'm glad," Elsa replied.

Rajiv looked down and said, "I only wish…"

She drew close to him. "What?"

He looked up at her face and said, "…that someone could have done this for you."

And the next thing Elsa knew, she was kissing Rajiv more passionately than she had ever imagined kissing anyone.

END CHAPTER 10


	11. Chapter 11: The Accountants

Chapter 11: The Accountants

Elsa was lost in the sensation of Rajiv's lips against hers when a "BANG!" from above yanked her back to reality. Her head jerked back and tilted upward to see Rajiv's fire-mandala blowing apart in all directions like a firework.

"Oh, my," she gasped, turning back to the prince. "Did _you_ do that?"

"It- It was not intentional," Rajiv replied. "But I believe I did, yes."

"Do it again," Elsa said breathlessly.

Rajiv raised his arm and shot a streak of fire into the sky, which then exploded in a brilliant burst of flame.

"Ha! Do some more!" Elsa shouted, clapping her hands in excitement like a child.

***

At the One-Eyed Wharf Rat, Kristoff was making suggestions to the various members of the pub-crawling ensemble about what drinks to order, steering them toward the on-tap local brews and away from anything that seemed particularly exotic. ("If it sounds fancy, believe me, it isn't.") Anna was almost as new to the place as the rest of them and needed about as much coaching, especially because Kristoff didn't want the princess to get too inebriated too soon by choosing an overly strong drink.

Everyone had a drink in hand and was chatting convivially—some with other members of the party, some with the local sailors and longshoremen who made up the bulk of the tavern's clientele. Kristoff was pleased, given that this was exactly the sort of taste of "the other Arendelle" that he had hoped to give them.

The tavern door opened, and in walked Henrik and Grimmjaw, the two ice-men whose provocations had gotten Kristoff thrown out of a similar establishment two nights earlier.

 _Crap_ , Kristoff thought. Those guys mostly hung out at the Surly Mermaid, which was why Kristoff had left that particular watering hole off the route for the pub crawl.

The two ice-men caught sight of Kristoff and his group almost immediately. Kristoff wasn't surprised, given the exotic appearance of many members of his party. Then he saw the leer on Grimmjaw's face as the man caught sight of Anna among the group.

Kristoff froze for a moment. Surely, these guys wouldn't insult the princess to her face, or pick a fight with Kristoff in her presence. But what if they did? The last thing Anna needed was to become involved in whatever scene these dillweeds might make in this dive bar.

Henrik took a step toward them, and Kristoff made a snap decision: to stop these guys in their tracks before they got anywhere near Anna. He strode over to them, covering the width of the floor before Henrik and Grimmjaw could take even two more steps.

"What are you guys doing here?" Kristoff said, chiefly because he couldn't think of what else to say.

"We're just here for a beer, same as you," Grimmjaw replied, sardonically parroting Kristoff's line from the other night.

"Though we didn't bring so much fancy company," Henrik added. "Is his Lordship entertaining foreign dignitaries this evening, as well as the Princess?"

"Maybe they're _all_ entertaining the Princess," Grimmjaw suggested, leering. "Hmm...I suppose that's about enough men for the job. Provided they leave her bosomy friend to us, that is."

Kristoff felt the heat of anger rising within him, but he held himself in check. This was all bullshit, crafted to get a rise out of him; there wasn't so much as one grain of truth behind it.

"Makes sense to me," Henrik replied. "I mean, better the Princess than the Queen. If you stuck it in _her_ ice-box, it'd be liable to freeze and snap off."

His self-control suddenly forgotten, Kristoff seized the smaller Grimmjaw by the collar.

"I swear to God..." he began, growling.

"What's going on here?" Kristoff heard Anna say from somewhere close behind him.

"Just- Just a difference of opinion," Kristoff said stiffly.

"Oh," Grimmjaw said, eyeing the approaching Anna even as Kristoff held him up by the collar, "good evening, Prin-"

In a flash, Kristoff released Grimmjaw's neck with one hand and then punched the man in the face.

"Kristoff!" Anna shouted. "Let go of him _right now_!"

Kristoff released Grimmjaw, who stumbled back toward Henrik.

"Are you all right?" Anna asked the man.

"Uh- I'm- I'm fine," Grimmjaw replied, clearly surprised by the question.

Anna removed two gold coins from her purse and slapped them down on the bar, getting the bartender's attention as she pointed to Grimmjaw and Henrik.

"Give these two men as many drinks as this gold will buy," she said. "My party will be leaving now. Sorry for the trouble."

"Uh, yes, of course, your Highness," the barkeep said.

"Ah, guys?" Kristoff called awkwardly toward his group. "We're, uh, going to move on to the next place now." Then, looking at the glare he was getting from Anna, he added, "We'll, um, meet you outside."

***

Rajiv sent flare after flare into the air, causing them to explode in various patterns and even altering their colors among orange, red, and yellow-white. Elsa watched in wonder; this, she realized, must have been how Anna felt on those long-ago mornings when the little redheaded girl had cried, "Do the magic, do the magic!"

Elsa, not taking her eyes off the sky, took Rajiv's free hand in hers. Then, as the prince fired off another flare, she raised her other arm and created a burst of ice crystals in the air, which caught the light from the flare and diffracted it into a million tiny rainbows.

Rajiv looked at her in surprise. Then he smiled and shot another bright burst of flame into the sky.

***

As Kristoff headed toward the door, Anna hot on his heels, he heard young Prince Hypatios shout, "Whoa, look at that! Fireworks!" causing the other princes and attendants to flock to the window. Kristoff, though, decided that it would be smarter to keep moving.

As soon as they were out the door, Kristoff turned to Anna and said, "Look, I can explain."

"You don't have to," Anna replied crossly. "You hit that guy because he was about to say something nasty, didn't you?"

"Well...yeah. And I didn't want there to be, you know, a scene."

"You mean you were afraid _I_ would make a scene. That my delicate royal ears couldn't handle whatever that creep was going to say."

"That's not exactly the way I would put-"

"Kristoff," Anna cut in, "you know where I've been for the last nine months, while my sister was shut up in the throne room and parlors and conference rooms? I've been out here, with the people, cutting ribbons and breaking bottles. And even though it was stupid, it gave me a chance to hear—and overhear—what the people of Arendelle have to say. Do you think I don't know about the gossip? The innuendos? The dirty jokes? Do you think I need your protection from that?"

"I just...I don't want people to get the wrong idea about you."

"Kristoff, you used violence to stop someone from speaking badly about me. What idea do you think THAT gives people?"

"I, I wasn't- I didn't..." the ice-man stammered. Anna snorted.

"I think I've had enough bar-hopping for this evening," she said gruffly. "Good night, Kristoff." Then she walked briskly away.

Kristoff was still trying to wrap his head around what had just happened when the rest of his party emerged from the One-Eyed Wharf Rat, Hildy in the lead.

"Where's Anna?" she asked.

"She...left," Kristoff replied awkwardly.

"Was it because you did something stupid?"

"N- Yes."

She patted Kristoff on the shoulder and said, "I guess I should go catch up with her." Then, turning to the rest of the group, she said, "See you later, boys!" eliciting a few moans of disappointment.

***

Anna walked rapidly up the cobblestone street, her shoes striking the pavement sharply with every step.

Why did Kristoff have to be like this? Wanting to protect her physically was one thing, but she didn't need anyone to protect her feelings, or her reputation. And it was insulting that he seemed to believe otherwise.

She needed to get her mind off this, or she'd just end up fuming all night long and not getting a wink of sleep. It occurred to her that she was behind on her research for the trade conference, and that maybe she could shed some light on the sulfur/pine-pitch mystery while she was at it. The Treasury was directly on her way to the castle, anyway.

When she arrived she wasn't surprised to see two guards at the front door—the Treasury was guarded twenty-four/seven—but she was a bit surprised to see lights burning inside.

"Good evening, your Highness," the more senior of the two guards said, both of them bowing slightly.

"Good evening," Anna said. "Is someone still working in there?"

"Yes ma'am," the guard said. "The Minister and the chief accountants are all still here."

The guard unlocked the door and held it open for Anna, then closed and locked it behind her.

"Hi," Anna said to the two accountants, sitting as usual at their opposing desks.

"Evening, your Highness," they replied, not quite simultaneously.

"You guys are working awfully late."

One of the accountants, a somewhat stocky man with rosy cheeks, pointed to his counterpart as he spoke.

"That one," he said, "thought we should start double-checking the import tax revenues now." The man's eyes narrowed as he added, "Never mind that we're barely into the second quarter."

The other accountant—a tall, slim man with a blond moustache and goatee that made it difficult to estimate his age—seemed a bit self-conscious as he replied, "I thought it would be...helpful, if the Princess had the latest numbers for the trade conference next week."

Despite her bad mood, Anna smiled inwardly—not merely because of the goateed accountant's desire to help, but because it was clear that he wasn't doing it to curry favor with her. If she hadn't dropped by just now, she probably never would have known about his extra effort on her behalf.

"Well then," she said, "keep up the good work. I'm going upstairs to see the Minister."

Anna went to the back of the room and up the wooden stairs to the second floor. The Minister's office was right at the top of the stairs; earlier that week, the Minister had told her that she liked to be "close to the action." Anna had tried not to laugh.

She stopped at the threshold of the Minister's open office door. The gray-haired woman was bent over some papers on her desk.

"Good evening, Minister," Anna said.

The plump woman looked up and removed her gold-rimmed spectacles. "Ah, Princess. What brings you by at this late hour?"

"I was…in the neighborhood," Anna replied, "and I thought I'd catch up on my reading."

"I'm afraid this isn't a particularly good time," the Minister said. "I expect we'll be closing up soon."

"That's okay," Anna said. "Being…who I am means that I can be in any Crown building unescorted, so it's fine if you guys leave before I do. The guards will lock up after me anyway, right?"

"Very well, then," the Minister said. "Don't keep yourself up too late. A girl your age needs her rest, even if she feels as though her energy is boundless."

In Anna's experience, people who had reached a certain age often seemed unable to perceive any difference between a nineteen-year-old and a thirteen-year-old—even if said nineteen-year-old had the equivalent authority of a lieutenant general. So the princess tried not to let this unsolicited advice rankle. She did not succeed.

"Good night, Minister," she said stiffly, and stepped out of the doorway. The Minister had already resumed looking at the paperwork on her desk.

Anna went back downstairs and into the records room, lighting a safety lantern to read by. But her annoyance at the Minister's condescension, on top of everything else that had happened today—her clumsy accident at the sulfur mine, being thrown from her horse, her repeatedly frustrated attempts to talk to Elsa, the argument with Kristoff—made it difficult to just sit and read. And after only twenty minutes or so of forcing herself to look at the huge pages with their tiny print, sitting and reading became intolerable.

She stood up, forcefully closed the trade log she had been reading, pulled open the door, and put out the lamp. Anna then exited into the main room and, without meaning to, slammed the door closed behind her. The two accountants looked up from their ledgers.

"Is everything all right, your Highness?" the goateed one asked.

"Sorry," Anna said. "I've had kind of a crummy day."

"Sorry to hear it, ma'am," the man replied.

"Thank you," Anna sighed, starting to shuffle toward the door.

"Um, your Highness?" the accountant piped. "Have you ever visited the vault?"

Anna stopped and turned around. "No, I haven't."

"Would you like to?"

Anna blinked. "I don't see why not."

"Holgar," the man said, looking at his counterpart, "let's go downstairs, shall we?"

Lighting a torch, the mustachioed accountant—who introduced himself as Bulmar—led Anna down the stone stairs into the cellar of the treasury, Holgar following behind. The stairs ended in a square room, most of whose opposite wall was taken up by a wide iron door with two keyholes.

Bulmar and Holgar each pulled out a large key that hung from a chain on his neck and walked up to one of the keyholes. Then they inserted the keys.

"Ready?" Bulmar said. Holgar nodded.

They turned their keys, and with a great clatter of tumblers and gears, the door unlocked. Bulmar then moved back as Holgar pulled the heavy door open.

Raising his torch to illuminate the interior of the vault, Bulmar led Anna inside. Near the door were four large chests—two on each side as they entered—and there was an even larger one in the very back of the vault. In between, there were a dozen clay jars, each nearly four feet tall and vase-like in shape, with a round lid set firmly in the neck of the jar.

"This," Bulmar said, "is where all of Arendelle's revenues—chiefly from taxes—and emergency funds are kept."

He opened one of the chests near the door, and Anna gasped. The chest was filled almost to the top with gold coins.

"I'm showing off a bit," Bulmar said. "This is the only chest that is entirely full at the moment. The chests are used for monies that are expected to be spent during this tax year, according to the Crown's annual budget."

"Then what are those big jars for?" Anna asked.

Holgar spoke up. "Those are coffers."

"They contain the kingdom's rainy-day money," Bulmar added. "During good years, we fill them, and once they're full, we seal the tops shut. In bad years, when we need to break into those funds-"

"-we literally break into them," Holgar finished.

"Wow," Anna said, walking among the coffers. "So each of these is full of gold? We must have had quite a lot of good years."

"Indeed," Bulmar said. "The late King and Queen were very responsible in their spending."

"What about the big chest in the back?" Anna asked.

"Ah," Bulmar said, a twinkle in his blue eye as he started to walk toward the chest. "I think you'll like this one. It contains non-monetary assets that the Crown has received but has not converted into cash."

"I'm guessing that isn't as boring as it sounds," Anna said.

"No, indeed," Bulmar replied, opening the chest.

And suddenly memories of the fairy-tale books of Anna's childhood came rushing back, because inside the chest was a pile of treasures worthy of their pages: necklaces, tiaras, bracelets, and rings; gold statuettes and silver figurines; jewel-encrusted snuffboxes, pillboxes, candy cases, and desk clocks; even a gold-plated candelabra. Anna couldn't help but laugh with the wonder and absurdity of it.

"What IS all this stuff?" she asked Bulmar excitedly. "I mean, where did it all come from?"

"Oh, it has accumulated here over many years," the accountant explained. "Most of these items are gifts that the late King and Queen and their predecessors received from foreign monarchs, ambassadors, high-end artisans trying to promote their wares, people like that. Each object is listed in a log book that shows the date of receipt and the identity of the giver. That way, should, say, Queen Elsa ever need to bestow a lavish gift upon someone, she could 're-gift' one of these items without the risk of the recipient recognizing it."

"Wow," Anna said, still gazing at the treasure trove, her eyes wandering over each piece. "The lengths kings and queens will go to…"

Anna heard Holgar clear his throat, obviously impatient.

"Highness," Bulmar said, "is there an item here that is of particular…interest to you?"

In fact, there was: in looking over the treasure, Anna's eye had been caught by a thin gold necklace with a small pendant in the shape of an owl. The owl's eyes were the tiniest rubies Anna had ever seen.

Pointing at it, Anna replied, "It's…beautiful, without being flashy, you know?"

"I quite agree," Bulmar said, smiling. "You could hold on to it, if you like."

"Hold onto it?"

"These items are the property of the Crown, so as a member of the royal family, you are entitled to borrow any of them indefinitely. A note would simply be made in the log book that the necklace is in your possession. Just…please take care not to lose it," he finished, a bit nervously.

"I will."

Anna put the necklace on, thinking that Bulmar would probably find this more reassuring than her putting it in her pocket. Bulmar smiled and nodded; apparently, he thought the necklace looked good on her.

Bulmar and Holgar closed the chest, and they and Anna started back toward the vault door. Anna made the mistake of glancing down at her new pendant—wondering how it looked against her vest—and stumbled into one of the tall coffers, nearly knocking it over. The two accountants rushed over and steadied it.

"Sorry," Anna said, embarrassed.

They went back upstairs, and Bulmar pulled a log book from a shelf and made the appropriate note in it.

"Well," Anna said, "That was amazing. Thank you so much."

"You're most welcome, Highness," Bulmar replied. Holgar nodded neutrally.

Anna bid them goodnight, and headed back toward the castle. Her mood had definitely improved—not because she could be easily distracted from her worries by shiny things, but because of the kindness behind Bulmar's gesture. It was clear to Anna that the man had no agenda; he wasn't showing off out of ego (she certainly knew _that_ when she saw it), and he wasn't sweet on her (judging from his guileless expression, the wedding ring on his finger, and the child's drawing pinned the wall near his desk). He had done it simply because he perceived that she needed cheering up.

But something about the experience bothered her, and it wasn't until she was nearly at the castle gate that she realized what it was.

She had nearly knocked that coffer over when she bumped into it. If it was full of gold coins, shouldn't it have been heavier?

***

"So," Elsa said, "what else do you think you can do with your fire magic?"

"I…I'm not sure," Rajiv said. He hadn't had much time to speculate on such questions. "Perhaps…"

He brought a flame to life in his hand, letting it grow to the size of his palm. Then he passed it to his other hand. Soon, he was tossing the fire like a ball from one hand to the other.

"Hmm," Elsa said. "Can you stop it in mid-air?"

Rajiv tossed the flame again, and indeed, he managed to make it halt in the space between his hands. Then, experimentally, he began to move it around in the air.

"Interesting," Elsa said, nodding.

Rajiv moved the flame around himself in a circle, then around the both of them in a figure eight. As he did so, he could feel sweat forming on his brow, which Elsa seemed to notice.

"Maybe that's enough for tonight," she said. "You're using 'muscles' you've never used before; you don't want to be sore in the morning. Literally or figuratively, I'm not sure."

"You are probably right," Rajiv said, letting the flame shrink and flicker out in his hand. "Besides, I just noticed how hungry I am."

Elsa opened the pack that contained their dinner—a couple of venison sandwiches.

"And it's getting late," Elsa said. "We'll eat, then head back down to the castle. Good thing the moon is out."

Rajiv looked at Elsa's face. Her pale skin and blonde hair caught every scintilla of moonlight, and her blue eyes almost seemed to glow with it. Rarely had he seen such haunting beauty.

"Indeed," Rajiv replied, and accepted a sandwich from Elsa's hand.

***

Kristoff looked at his group as he led them to their fourth drinking establishment of the evening. Since Anna and Hildy's departures, the party had been whittled down further: Lord Otos had taken Prince Hypatios back to the castle at the approach of the boy's bedtime, and Hjalmar's attendant, Halfdan, had headed back there as well, after overindulging in various red wines of questionable vintage. But that still left Kristoff with ten drinking companions, so he forged on.

***

The bedroom door closed behind Gerda, who had just handed Anna a freshly laundered nightgown and bid her good night. Now alone, Anna sighed.

It had been a mostly crummy day, with one nice highlight, but even that was marred by her unease about that coffer. And it was probably nothing; it wasn't like she had a real sense of what gold was supposed to weigh.

She took off the owl pendant and laid it on her dresser—where, she realized, she had left the letter Hildy had given her, written by her mother to Hildy's stepfather back when they were teenagers. She opened the unsealed envelope and took out the letter, which was a single page long.

"Dearest Reginald," the letter began.

 _Reginald?_ Anna thought. _No wonder he goes by 'The Duke.'_

"Yesterday was quite a day. As you know, I've been diligently practicing my riding ever since I arrived at Uncle Gustav's manor, but today I found out how much I have left to learn. I had decided that I was ready to try riding Charlemagne—a spirited stallion—in the paddock near the stables.

"Once he was ready and I was on him, I walked him for a minute, then directed him to trot. But instead, he broke into a full gallop! I'm afraid I panicked and pulled back on the reins too hard, which made him stop so suddenly that I flew right out of the saddle and landed on the ground. Thank goodness the earth in the paddock is soft—and that I didn't stop him in a place where I would have been thrown headlong into the fence.

"I didn't ride for the rest of the day. Not even on Clarabelle, my usual horse.

"I thought Uncle Gustav would lecture me about taking out a horse that I clearly wasn't ready to ride, but he didn't. I suppose he thought I had learned that lesson well enough for myself. Instead, he found me in the library (where I often go to read for a while after dinner) and asked me if I would be riding again tomorrow. I told him no.

"'Oh, come, now,' he said. 'You know what they say about getting back on the horse.'

"I explained that it wasn't because I was shaken up by the fall—it was because I didn't trust myself after making such a foolish mistake. I'd almost gotten myself killed. What if, tomorrow, it wasn't just 'almost'?

"He put his hand on my shoulder, and he smiled at me the way uncles do when they are about to say something wise.

"'Good judgement,' he said, 'comes from experience, and experience mostly comes from bad judgement.'

"I laughed at the time, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that he was right. So this morning, I went to the stable, took out Clarabelle, and got to work. And Uncle Gustav promised to teach me how to fall without getting hurt.

"I hope everything is well back in town, and that it won't be long before I see you again.

"Love always,

"Iduna"

Anna put the letter down on the dresser. It was interesing to read something her mother wrote when she was even younger than Anna was now. And it was a little embarrassing that her teenage mother wrote so much more elegantly—and legibly—than Anna herself.

But it was still nice to catch this unexpected glimpse of her. Nice enough that Anna finally felt like she could sleep.

***

It was in the wee hours of the morning that Kerig, part-time mercenary and full-time thug, saw a street urchin enter the Surly Mermaid with a rolled up piece of paper. The dirty-faced youth was quite possibly the only boy of his age in town who was still awake, let alone in a tavern.

Without speaking, the boy handed the paper to Kerig, then held out his palm, into which the shaven-headed mercenary dropped a copper coin.

"One?" the boy said, looking peeved. "It's two after midnight."

"Well," Kerig said, cracking the knuckles of his big hands, "keeping what's left of your teeth is worth more than a copper, don't you think?"

The boy, equal parts angry and frightened, walked rapidly away. Kerig unrolled the note.

"There is a complication," it read. "Prince Rajiv must be neutralized before the hour arrives. See to it."

END CHAPTER 11 


	12. Chapter 12: The Goatherd

Chapter 12: The Goatherd

Anna yawned and stretched as she awoke. The first light of dawn was barely creeping through the window, yet she could already hear movement in the sitting room between her bedroom and Elsa's.

The Princess practically leaped out of bed, threw on a robe, and went straight into the sitting room. There she found Elsa, looking a bit groggy as she reached for the handbell on the table between the room's two easy chairs, no doubt to summon a servant to fetch her some strong tea.

"Elsa! Good morning!" Anna said, half-startling her sister.

"Oh! Good…good morning, Anna," the Queen replied.

"I'm so glad you're here," Anna declared. "There's something I've been wanting to talk to you about."

"Oh? Good—there's something I want to tell you, too," Elsa said, suddenly looking considerably perkier.

"What's that?"

Smiling and blushing slightly, Elsa said in a low voice, "I kissed Rajiv last night."

"WHAT?"

"Shhhhhh! You'll bring the guards running!"

"Okay, what- How- When did- I thought you hated him!"

"Well, I did, but then, I…learned more about him."

"Oh, really?" Anna said skeptically. "Must have been quite a _lot_ more."

"Well, we-"

"What's his last name?" Anna interrupted.

"Nambi."

"What's his favorite food?"

"Shrimp coconut curry."

"Best friend's name?"

"Ajay."

"Eye color?"

"Milk-chocolate brown."

"Foot size?"

"Ten, maybe ten and a half."

"Okay, how could you actually know his foot size?"

"When you climb a mountain with someone, you end up looking at their feet a lot."

Not certain why, Anna felt her spirit sag. She dropped into the other easy chair.

"Fine," she said, trying to look cheerful. "Be better than me at _everything_."

She had meant it as a joke, but when she heard herself say it, it didn't sound like one. Elsa didn't seem to think so, either, because she reached across the small table and took Anna's hand.

"Anna, I'm not better than you," the blonde woman said. "You keep thinking that you're this great fool because you made one mistake with Prince Hans, but it was _one_ mistake. Don't you remember how big a mistake _I_ made that day?"

"You had powers you couldn't control. That's not a mistake, that's just…bad luck."

"That's not what I'm talking about. My mistake was not trusting you."

"What do you mean?"

"If I had gone back down the mountain with you instead of trying to keep you away…if I had let you be there for me, the way you were trying to be…then maybe I wouldn't have made such a mess of things. Maybe I wouldn't have frightened the people of Arendelle half to death. And maybe I wouldn't have almost"—Elsa looked at the floor—"killed my own sister."

"Oh, Elsa," Anna said, squeezing her sister's hand in both of her own.

Elsa looked up again. "But now I know better. That day, I learned that I can always count on you, even when I can't count on myself. I learned that I can trust you with my life."

Looking Anna in the eye, she said, "I learned from my mistake, Anna. Didn't you learn from yours?"

Anna's eyes grew a little wider as the princess remembered the words her mother had written: that good judgment comes from experience, and that experience mostly comes from bad judgment.

"You're right," she said slowly. "I _did_ learn from it. When I thought something strange was going on with Kristoff, I didn't just blindly trust him; I looked into it, and when I found out he was in debt, I confronted him about it."

"And it's not just Kristoff," Elsa said. "I've seen how you size people up, the way you can figure out what's going on in someone's head from the little things they say and do. That's a skill, Anna—an important one, especially in the world _we_ live in."

Anna nodded. "It doesn't always mean I make the best decisions, though."

"You're impulsive sometimes," Elsa said. "But that's not always a bad thing. When you came into the parlor and saw that Rajiv was on fire, you didn't stand there gawking like me and Ajay and Kristoff—you grabbed a curtain and went to put him out."

"And if Ajay hadn't stopped me, I would have been princess flambé," Anna replied.

"You used the information you had, in a situation that demanded quick action. Under most circumstances, what you did would have saved a life. That's part of why I trust you—because I know that if the worst happens, you won't hesitate to do what needs to be done."

Anna nodded slowly, then smiled.

"Thanks," she said. "But can I ask you something?"

"What's that?"

"You and Rajiv—how did you get past all the…problems…you were having?"

"I suppose," Elsa replied, "we just needed to get them out in the open."

Anna looked straight ahead for a moment, looking at nothing as she thought. Then, abruptly, she stood up.

"I've gotta go," she said.

"Really?" Elsa said in surprise. "To do what?"

"To get dressed," Anna said firmly, "and go see a man about a reindeer."

***

Kristoff wasn't hung over, because although he'd visited half a dozen bars with various princes and attendants last night, being in charge of the event had motivated him to keep his own drinking in check. He _was_ tired, though, so it didn't seem so bad to be lying on the dirt floor of his ice house. Here he stored not only hundreds of blocks of ice, insulated under a thick layer of straw, but also his sleigh and ice wagon. The sleigh had been carefully covered with a tarp to await next winter's first snowfall.

The ice-man was currently under the wagon, checking it over. With spring well underway, it wouldn't be long before demand for ice began to rise, and Kristoff wanted to be sure the wagon was ready to carry a full load. A rotted board in the bed or a weak spring in the undercarriage could be problematic when the conveyance was hauling as much as four thousand pounds of ice.

He had hoped he could have the wainwright do this, but Kristoff simply couldn't afford him. And, given that Kristoff was already in debt to the man, the wainwright wasn't inclined to extend him any additional credit. The ice-man would have to do the best he could on his own.

Kristoff was inspecting the rear axle when he heard the rusty hinges of the ice house door squeak.

"Kristoff?" Anna's voice called.

"Down here," he answered.

He heard her light, quick footsteps approach. Lifting his head to glance down over his own chest, he saw her maroon boots appear in front of the wagon.

"I don't care that you're not a noble or a royal," Anna said.

The statement took Kristoff by surprise—enough that he momentarily forgot where he was and tried to sit up, banging his head on the wagon's axle in the process.

"Ow!"

"Sorry!" Anna called.

Kristoff wriggled awkwardly out from under the wagon.

"Are we really going to talk about this now?" he asked as he stood up and put one hand to his head.

"We have to talk about it _sometime_ ," Anna replied. "And since you won't start the conversation, I will. It's time we got it all out in the open."

Kristoff let out a breath, and his eyes dropped to the dirt-and-straw floor.

"Look, you know how it is," he said. "The other ice dealers don't like that I get special treatment from you and the Queen. They don't see me as having earned some reward; they think it's because I'm dating you. Although they don't use the word 'dating.'"

"I know," Anna sighed. "That can't be easy for you."

"Actually, that part I can live with," Kristoff replied. "The part that bugs me is how some of your nobility friends react to your being with me."

"I know that, too," Anna replied. "But any noble who has a problem with me seeing you is NOT my friend."

"But they're part of your world. An important part. I'm an ice-man; the only people who I need to like me are my customers. But you-"

"Look," Anna interrupted, "if all I wanted was to be popular, I'd make out with Elsa in public. Apparently, a lot of people out there want to see that."

Kristoff blinked. "I gotta admit, I'd watch. And maybe commission a commemorative oil painting." The man shook his head rapidly. "My point is, you're a leader. You may not need people to like you, but you need them to respect you. And I hate the idea that your dating a commoner like me is messing that up."

"Even if it is, that's _my_ problem, not yours."

"But-"

"And I don't like you calling yourself a commoner," Anna continued. "Because there's nothing common about you. You helped save me, and Elsa, and this whole kingdom." She took a breath and added, "You might not be a nobleman, but you're the noblest man I know."

Kristoff was momentarily taken aback. He'd never before heard anyone describe him that way.

"But..." he asked, cautiously, "is it really worth it? Being with me, when all it brings you is-"

"Of course it's worth it!" Anna snapped.

"Why? Why put your reputation on the line for me?"

"Because I LOVE YOU, YOU IDIOT!"

Kristoff blinked.

"I love you," Anna said again, moving closer. Her blue eyes were shining.

"I- I love you, too," Kristoff said. Then, folding his arms around her, he put his face in her red hair and said, "I love you so much…"

For a long moment, they just held each other in the dim quiet of the ice house. Then Kristoff spoke.

"Anna," he said, "I'm sorry. I…I should have just...talked to you."

"It's okay," Anna replied, pulling her face back to look at his. "I had issues, too. But I'm over them now."

"Me too. I'm gonna be totally open with you from now on, I promise."

"Same here."

Anna let go of him and, with a glint in her eye, gave him a devilish little half-smile.

"What?" Kristoff said.

"Let's do it," she said.

"It?" Kristoff replied, not wanting to misunderstand.

" _It_ ," Anna said eagerly. "Right here, right now."

With a sweep of her arm, Anna cleared the straw off the nearest surface, hiked up her skirt, and hopped up, smiling invitingly at Kristoff.

"Anna, that's-"

"ICE!" Anna hollered, leaping up and off the frozen block on which she had just planted her bottom.

She landed on her feet and stumbled forward. Kristoff caught her before she ran into the wall.

"You know," he said, "there's a perfectly good bed in the sha- cottage."

"Yeah," Anna gasped, now holding her butt with both hands. "Let's go check that out."

***

Elsa, ready for the day, emerged from her bedchamber and headed for the main staircase. As she approached the entrance to the stairs, she saw Rajiv there, casually looking out the window. He turned his head as she came near.

"Good morning," he said with a smile.

"Good morning," Elsa replied. "Were you waiting here for me?"

"I thought I would try to catch you before you begin your work day. Baron Herringholtz told me you have quite a full schedule."

"And why," Elsa said with a sly smile, "would you ask him about my schedule?"

"I was hoping that perhaps you could show me your castle's gardens. The Baron said you might have half an hour or so at three o'clock. That is, if young Prince Hypatios does not win your heart during your interview with him this morning."

Elsa smiled. "Hmm. It seems the Baron is giving out information about my schedule rather freely."

"Do not blame him too much. I pressed."

"And what will _you_ be doing this morning? You look rather dressed up; you're even wearing your sword."

"Lord Otos has asked to meet with me. I believe he wants to discuss the possibility of Dianisia entering into a trade agreement for Sundaran steel. So I took a cue from Ajay and decided to bring an example."

"Well, then, I wish you a pleasant morning."

"And you, your Highness."

Elsa walked through the entranceway to the stairs, then paused.

"Oh," she said with faux casualness, "and I'll see you at three."

***

Kristoff rolled over and kissed Anna, softly.

"That was…fantastic," he said.

"Uh-huh," Anna replied. "I'm sorry I made you wait so long."

"No, don't apologize. You needed to be ready; I get that. Besides, I made you say the L word first. Although that was Mama Bulda's idea; she said I might scare you off if I said it first. You know, because of the Prince Hans thing."

Anna smiled at him. "This is the first time in nine months that I've heard his name without freaking out. I think I'm finally over it."

He squeezed her hand. "And I'm never going to forget those sweet words, 'I love you, you idiot.'"

"And you're never going to let ME forget them, either, are you?"

"Not for a second," he said, grinning and squeezing her hand. "So...what now? Are we...done?"

Anna put her lips to his ear and, breathily, whispered, "Not even close."

Kristoff smiled, and rolled on top of her.

***

At eleven o'clock, the door to the parlor opened, and Kai showed Prince Hypatios in. Elsa smiled and stood up from her easy chair.

"Good morning, Prince," she said, curtsying.

"G- Good morning," the boy replied, bowing stiffly as Kai exited and closed the door.

Hypatios, his eyes fixed on the floor, held out a rectangular box.

"I...I brought you...these chocolates...from my homeland," he stammered.

"Why, thank you," Elsa said. "That was very thoughtful."

She tried to take the box from him, but for some reason, he wouldn't let go. His fingers gripped one edge tightly.

"It's...it's all right," she said. Lowering her voice to a mock whisper, she added, "I really like chocolate, too. I'm happy to share them with you."

The boy looked up at her, and Elsa was surprised to see that his eyes were wide and glistening. Then he burst into tears.

Elsa didn't know what to do. Although she now and again visited local schools to talk about what the Queen did all day, she'd had very little experience being with children one-on-one. And she certainly hadn't had any practice consoling them when they were upset.

All she had to go on was what her mother used to do when Elsa and Anna were children. So Elsa stepped closer to the boy and, gingerly, put her arms around him. The boy buried his face in her dress and wept.

Elsa held him and tried to remember what words to say. She could recall only a few, but maybe they would be enough.

"There, there," Elsa said. "Just tell me what's wrong, and we'll try to make it right."

After a long moment, the boy sobbed, "I- I'm not Prince Hypatios." He sniffed, then continued, "My name is Tomas."

Elsa blinked. "What?"

"My family...we're goatherds. But last year, a sickness killed all our goats, and...my mother and father could barely feed me and my brothers and sisters, and they owed more and more money to Mr. Kalinauskas..."

"Who?"

"Our- Our landlord. He was going to throw us out of our house, and off our land.

"But then Lord Otos came. He wore fancy clothes, and he said he would give my family money if I would go on a trip to Arendelle with him. He had the money with him. I'd never seen so much..."

"Go on, Pr- Tomas."

"He said that- that I looked like the prince, so I would be playing the prince, like what the actors at the Amphitheater used to do before it closed. And he said I'd get to stay in a castle, and eat all the food I wanted, and meet a real queen.

"I thought he was a nice man. But he wasn't. When we were coming here on the ship, he made me practice many things: what to say, how to dance, how to eat with a knife and fork, even how to walk like a prince. I had to practice for hours and hours, and when I didn't do it right, he would beat me."

Elsa remembered how the boy had reacted when she had touched his back at the ball two nights earlier.

"Tomas," she said, soberly but gently, "may I lift up the back of your shirt?"

Silently, the boy nodded. Elsa stepped behind him and pulled up the tail of his shirt. The child's back was a mural of half-healed bruises.

"Oh, Tomas." She lowered his shirttail again.

"So today," the boy said, "when it was my turn to be alone with you, he gave me the chocolates as a present for you. But I knew there must be something bad in them, because he said I had to make sure you ate some. That I had to in- insist."

"Something bad...like poison?"

The boy nodded.

"And then...then he said that...after I watched you eat a piece...that...that I should eat one, too." His voice broke as he added, "As a _reward_."

The child collapsed into sobs.

Elsa held the boy and let him cry for a few moments. Then she got down on one knee so that she would be eye-to-eye with him.

"Tomas, this is very important: Why is Otos doing this?"

"He- He never told me. But one night, when he thought I was asleep, I heard him arguing with the captain about something, and Otos said, 'I don't care what your admiral says. I'm under direct orders from the King.'"

The boy sniffed and took a deep breath.

"Please," he said. "Otos said that if I didn't obey, if I...failed him, that he- he would hurt my family. He said all he would have to do is send a message, and then soldiers would come to my house, and-"

"That's not going to happen," Elsa said, frowning.

Why, she wondered, would King Aegeus do something so monstrous as to extort service from a child by threatening his family? And why would he want Elsa dead? Neither the means nor the end made any sense.

"Tomas, where is Otos now?"

"I don't know. After he dressed me this morning, he told me he had business to attend to. I haven't seen him since then."

Elsa took a breath and put both of her hands on Tomas' shoulders.

"Here's what I'm going to do," she said. "I'm going to have Otos found and arrested. Then I'm going to have my spymaster send agents into Dianisia to get your family to safety. And _then_ ," she said angrily, "I am going to have a few words with King Aegeus about all this.

"Wait here," she said. "I'm going to get some guards to watch over you until Otos is found."

She strode toward the door. Just before she reached it, she passed a tall, beige-curtained window, and her peripheral vision caught a flicker of movement from the curtain. Before she could even look to see what it was, she felt a stinging pain in her shoulder.

She turned, and there stood Otos, holding a dagger whose shiny blade was now tinged red with Elsa's blood.

"You!" Elsa cried.

She flung out her uninjured arm and unleashed a blast of ice that froze the left half of Otos' body to the wall behind him. Then she put a hand over her shoulder wound and iced it over to stop the bleeding.

"Well," Elsa said darkly, "I suppose this will save the castle guard the effort of looking for you."

"I suspected that the boy would fail," Otos said, "so I took the precaution of lying in wait for you here. As King Aegeus has been known to say, 'Plan for success, but be prepared for failure.'"

"The boy's chances were better than yours," Elsa replied bitterly. "Did you really think you could kill me with that dagger? You- AH!" Elsa cried out as pain shot down the length of her wounded arm.

"I think I already have," Otos replied smugly. "The poison now coursing through your veins will end your life in minutes."

Elsa tried to take a step toward the door, but her legs would no longer support her, and she fell painfully to her knees on the stone floor. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tomas looking on, frozen in horror.

She tried to shout for the guards, but the sound that issued from her lips was barely more than a squeak. She could only whisper as she looked up at Otos.

"Why?"

The man's face was grim as he replied, "What the boy told you is true—not just for his family, but for tens of thousands of others on every island of Dianisia. Goat products are our chief export, and although the disease now appears to have passed, the damage to our economy has been done. The King has made every effort to conceal the extent of the disaster from outsiders, but within our kingdom, its effects are rampant: Almost every hour, Dianisia loses another goatherd and gains another beggar, another prostitute, another thief.

"It seems our land is cursed," Otos concluded. "So we must take yours."

"But...why Arendelle?" Elsa gasped, just before another spasm of pain made her fall onto her hands.

"Your kingdom's defensive forces have never been particularly strong. And now that Arendelle has a queen who can foil an invasion with a mere wave of her hand, they have become complacent. You would be shocked by the ease with which I have been able to move about your castle, your grounds, your...well, your people will find out soon enough."

Otos' left arm was trapped in Elsa's ice, but his right arm remained free enough for him to drop his dagger, reach into his cloak, and withdraw a flask-like container made from white clay. Otos lifted the vessel into the air, then hurled it to the floor at his feet, shattering it.

Instantaneously, flames roared up from the broken flask. Elsa was nearly ten feet away, yet she could feel a wave of intense heat as the flames burned brightly. They only lasted a few seconds, but after they quickly shrank to nothing, Otos was free of the ice.

Elsa tried to crawl forward, to get to the door, but she only fell face-first onto the floor, unable to move.

Otos shook the stiffness from his formerly trapped arm, bent down, and picked up his dagger. Then he started toward Tomas.

END CHAPTER 12 


	13. Chapter 13: The Reindeer

Chapter 13: The Reindeer

It was pouring again. Sitting side by side on the driver's bench of the ice wagon, Anna and Kristoff both had their cloak-hoods up as Kristoff drove. Anna hadn't quite felt up to sitting astride a horse after her rather active morning with her boyfriend.

"Thanks for the ride," Anna shouted over the rain.

"No problem," Kristoff called back. "And I'm glad to drive you back to the castle, too." Anna gently elbowed him in the ribs.

They arrived at the castle's service entrance, and Kristoff unhitched Sven so that the reindeer could go take shelter in the stables. Then Anna and Kristoff headed indoors.

"Wow," Anna said as she and Kristoff doffed their soggy cloaks and hung them on pegs by the door. "It is really coming down. I hope this doesn't mean we're going to have another lousy showing at tonight's-"

Suddenly, a scream echoed down the hall. Anna and Kristoff glanced at each other for a split second, then took off running toward the sound.

***

"Well, that was…odd," Rajiv said to Ajay as they headed down the corridor, away from the third-floor meeting room and toward the stairs that would take them back up to their suite. "I thought Lord Otos had invited us to meet with _him_ , not with the Dianisian ambassador to Arendelle."

"Mmm," Ajay agreed, frowning. "And the ambassador did not seem very well prepared for our negotiations. When you asked him about how much mohair the Dianisians might have for trade, he looked as if he were making the number up."

"He might have been. From what I have seen in my father's court, ambassadors are not always chosen for their diplomatic skills. Often, they are friends or relations of some powerful noble whose favor a king or queen wishes to keep."

They reached the entrance to the stairwell and started up toward their rooms.

"It was peculiar, though," Ajay said, "that the ambassador seemed to be trying to keep the discussion going even when he appeared to have nothing more to say."

"And then he abruptly ended it," Rajiv added as he moved aside for three castle guards who were coming down the stairs. "It was as if he needed the meeting to last precisely-"

Rajiv heard swift movement behind him. Reflexively, his hand went for the hilt of his sword even as his head turned to see what was happening. Then something struck him in the temple, and his vision went dark.

***

Anna and Kristoff rushed into the parlor, having already seen the cloaked figure of a man run out its door and, seconds later, two guards rush in. A faint haze of smoke and an acrid smell—strange but somehow slightly familiar—hung in the air.

At the far end of the room stood Prince Hypatios, wide-eyed with terror, and Anna guessed that it was he who had screamed. Then her own eyes went wide as she saw her sister on the floor with a bloody wound on her arm.

"Elsa!" Anna screamed, running to the woman's side.

The Queen's eyes were closed, but her mouth moved slightly. Anna leaned down and put her ear right next to Elsa's lips.

"Otos..." the Queen murmured. "Poison..."

Half a dozen palace guards ran in. Anna's head whipped around.

"Get the royal physician!" she shouted.

One of the guards ran out again, Kristoff right on his heels.

"Elsa, stay with me," Anna pleaded.

Suddenly, Kristoff reappeared—with Dr. Montalvo in tow.

"He was nearby," Kristoff explained rapidly.

"What happened here? Let me see her," the doctor said, kneeling down by Elsa.

"She was poisoned," Anna replied.

The doctor looked at the Queen's face, illuminated by the firelight from the hearth. The doctor used his hand to shade Elsa's eyes for a moment, then uncovered them again and watched the reaction of her pupils.

"It's a nerve toxin," he said.

"Can you stop it?" Anna asked.

"Not without knowing which particular toxin it is," the doctor replied.

Despite Anna's fear for her sister, the wheels in her mind were still turning, perhaps even faster than usual.

"Otos must have been planning this attack from the beginning," she said. "Which means he probably brought the poison with him from Dianisia."

"Then it is almost surely an extract from the petals of the white iris," the doctor said. "It's highly neurotoxic, and the plant is native to that country." He looked gravely at Anna. "I'm afraid there is no known antidote."

"Grand Pabbie," Kristoff breathed. "He'll know what to do. How long does she have?"

"Not long," Montalvo replied. "But this should help."

The doctor opened his bag and dumped the contents onto the floor. Then he removed a false bottom from the bag, revealing vials and bottles underneath.

"I keep the real medicines hidden," he explained as he took a small vial from the bag, "in case Prince Javier decides to self-medicate in my absence."

He looked at Elsa for a moment, literally sizing her up, then poured a measured amount from the vial into a small glass.

"Lift her head, please," he said to Anna. She did so, and the doctor poured the liquid down Elsa's throat.

"This should buy her some time," he said.

"How much?" Anna asked.

"Perhaps half an hour."

Kristoff put two fingers in his mouth and let loose an earsplitting whistle. Within moments, a wooden door on the opposite end of the parlor burst open, and Sven came galloping in, skidding to a stop at Kristoff's side.

Anna looked up at Kristoff.

"The troll village is more than ten miles away," she said, "and it's pouring rain. You'll never make it in time."

"Got any better ideas?" the ice-man asked.

In the space of a second, Anna's mind came up with several alternatives and rejected them all.

"Go," she said. "I'll-"

She had been about to say "-get my horse and be right behind you." But more people—guards, pages, functionaries—were arriving to learn the cause of the commotion, and when they saw their Queen unconscious and bloody on the floor, they all looked at Anna.

No, she realized. Not _at_ her— _to_ her.

"-see you when you get back," she finished.

***

Kerig the mercenary grunted as he helped one of his two henchmen drag the big, turbaned Sundaran into a disused closet near the second-floor landing. The other henchman, a fellow about Kerig's size but with considerably less wit, was carrying Prince Rajiv over his shoulder.

"I don't get it, chief," the man said as he laid the Prince down on the closet floor. "Weren't we s'posed to kill these guys?"

"The order said 'neutralized,'" Kerig replied. "That gives us some latitude."

"Yeah, but," the other henchman said, lowering Ajay's legs to the floor and pulling out some rope from inside his overcoat, "killin' 'em would've been easier than draggin' 'em up here and trussin' 'em up like this."

Kerig answered, "If we get caught, then knocking two men out, tying them up, and throwing them in a closet gets us a year or two on the rock pile. But murdering two foreign dignitaries—in the Queen's castle, no less—gets us fifteen seconds dancing at the end of a rope. I don't think they're paying us enough for that, do you?"

The other men grunted, and the three continued their work.

***

Anna helped Kristoff lift Elsa onto Sven's shoulders, laying the Queen on her stomach so that her head hung to one side of Sven's flanks and her feet to the other. Her body felt cold—very cold—even though Dr. Montalvo had said she was alive. Maybe it was some kind of side effect of her magic.

Kristoff climbed onto Sven's back, wedging the Queen securely between his hips and Sven's neck. Then, with an encouraging half-pat, half-slap to the reindeer's shoulder, he shouted, "Let's go!"

Sven took off, and Anna could hear his hooves clattering on the cobblestones as the reindeer tore out the castle gates and across the bridge to the mainland.

What was she supposed to do now? What would Elsa do in this situation?

Anna stood up and faced the various onlookers who had gathered by the door, then turned to the frightened boy in the back of the room.

"Did you see what happened?" she asked.

The shaking Tomas repeated everything he had told Elsa, then described Otos' attack on the Queen. The boy had been lucky—two castle guards happened to be nearby when Tomas screamed, and they came running before Otos had had the chance to kill the boy.

Anna turned to the Captain of the Guard, who had entered with a group of his men.

"Find Otos," she commanded. "Search the castle, the docks, and every ship, fishing boat, and dinghy in the port until he's found. Be careful—anyone who can get the better of my sister should be considered extremely dangerous. And put this boy under guard," she added, pointing to Tomas.

"Yes, your Highness," the captain said. "You should be under guard as well, ma'am, given the situation."

"That's fine," Anna replied.

The captain assigned two of the guards in the room to watch the Princess and two more to protect Tomas. Then the captain swept out, the remaining guardsmen following behind him.

The wheels in Anna's head kept turning. Considering what Tomas said about Otos acting on King Aegeus' orders, she asked herself why the Dianisian king would want Elsa dead. It couldn't be personal; they'd never even met. Which meant that Aegeus must be planning something—something for which he needed Elsa out of the way.

Anna turned to a small group of teenage pages that had gathered near the door, fixing her eyes on the one in front—a short-haired blonde girl whom the Princess knew fairly well.

"Karolina," Anna said, "find General"—crap, what was his name?—"Stark, and tell him to put the Army on alert. It's a good bet that this attack on my sister is just the first part of a bigger plan."

"Yes, ma'am," the girl replied, and darted out the door.

"Ma'am?" asked another uniformed page—a new boy, whose name might have been Max. "Should I give Admiral Ostergard the same message?"

Anna, glad of the boy's quick thinking, said, "Where is the admiral now?" The pages made it their business to know the whereabouts of all Crown VIPs so as to be able to get messages to them as quickly as possible.

"He's at the Navy dock, ma'am," the page replied.

"Good. Then tell him to put the Navy on alert, and that I'm coming to see him."

"At once, your Highness." The boy flew out of the room.

***

Kristoff and Sven rode hard down the dirt road that went in the general direction of the pine forest where the troll village lay. The rain was fierce, but Kristoff's cloak was more or less waterproof, and he had wrapped Elsa tightly in a somewhat better cloak borrowed from the guards at the castle gate.

They rode and rode. Sven seemed to understand the urgency of their mission, because he never once paused to rest; if anything, the reindeer seemed to grow swifter and more determined with each passing mile.

Finally, they approached the point where they would leave the road and enter the forest. But first they needed to cross the now swollen Moosehoof River. Squinting into the storm, Kristoff looked ahead and saw water rushing past some broken timbers that were sticking out of the riverbank on both sides.

"Oh, no," the ice-man said. "The bridge is washed out."

Kristoff thought quickly. The next-nearest bridge was a mile downstream—the opposite direction from the troll village—and there was no guarantee that _that_ bridge wouldn't be washed out, too. So he turned Sven and rode upstream along the bank until he found a spot where the river briefly became deeper and narrower, about twenty feet across.

He took one more look up and down the river, then said to Sven, "This is the narrowest spot I can find. You think you can jump it?"

The reindeer gave an aggressive snort.

"Attaboy," Kristoff said, giving Sven a solid pat on the neck.

They backed up to give Sven a good running start. Then the reindeer took off sprinting. Kristoff was impressed; not since their attempted rescue of Anna nine months earlier had the ice-man seen his animal friend move so fast.

They reached the riverbank, and Sven leaped mightily into the air.

"Ha ha!" Kristoff shouted as they flew in an arc over the rushing water. "Reindeers CAN fly!"

They landed hard on the riverbank. Sven landed on his feet, but as he staggered to stay upright, the grass tore away under his hooves, leaving only mud. The reindeer's legs scrambled as he fought to keep from slipping backward into the fast-moving river. Kristoff shifted his and Elsa's weight forward, trying to give the animal more traction with his front hooves.

Suddenly, Sven bent his head sharply downward, and Kristoff and Elsa tumbled forward, off the reindeer's back and onto the bank. Kristoff, wet and muddy, whipped his head around to see what had happened.

It was clear that Sven had lost the struggle to find any traction on the muddy riverbank. His front hooves were now sliding straight backward, leaving two deep channels in the mud as the rear half of his body went over the edge of the bank.

There was no time for Kristoff to do anything but look. In his best friend's eyes, he thought he would see panic, or desperation. Instead, he saw something far more frightening: resignation.

"No," Kristoff whispered.

The reindeer fell backward into the raging water. The powerful current caught him instantly, pulling him downstream and, within seconds, under the surface.

"No!" Kristoff cried, his eyes frantically scanning the rushing, debris-filled water. "Sven! SVEEEEEEN!"

But the reindeer was gone.

END CHAPTER 13 


	14. Chapter 14: The Trolls

Chapter 14: The Trolls

Anna left the castle with her two new bodyguards and Gerda, who was holding a huge umbrella over the princess' head. Anna wanted to ensure personally that the harbor defenses were ready.

As the four of them walked, Anna found her eyes darting around the courtyard between the castle and the gate, as though searching for some clue as to what was really going on. Inwardly, she chided herself for this pointless behavior; surely, there was nothing out here that-

Her mind stopped in mid-chide, because there _was_ something odd. Looking back over her shoulder, she addressed one of her protectors.

"Do you recognize those three guards walking towards the gate?"

The man looked ahead, squinting. "No, ma'am. But they could be new."

"I…don't think so," Anna replied. "Have them stopped before they get outside the wall."

The guard jogged ahead, waving silently but vigorously to get the attention of the guards at the gate. By the time Anna got there, six guards were blocking the exit of the three she had pointed out. It was their number that had originally drawn her notice—guards typically moved in pairs or squads, and sometimes singly, but not usually in threes. And now that she was close and could get a good look at them, Anna was sure that there was a problem.

"These three are impostors," she said. "Arrest them."

One of the three—a big, bald man—protested, "Your Highness, there must be some mista-"

"Royal guards," Anna interrupted, pointing at the man's feet, "wear dark-brown boots, not black." She turned to the next, who was equally large, saying, "Your overcoat obviously doesn't fit you." Then, to the last man, she said, "And royal guards' gloves are decorated with a crocus—not a tulip hastily painted blue."

Judging from the glances the man who had spoken was getting from the other two, Anna guessed he was the leader. She turned back to him.

"Why are you here?"

The man gave no reply beyond a stony look.

"If your being here has _anything_ to do with the attempt on my- on the Queen's life, you three are in for a _very_ rough week."

"Ha!" the smallest of the three men said defiantly. "You don't have that much ti-"

The leader shot daggers from his eyes at the smaller man, making him go silent.

Anna turned to look at the head gate guard, a sergeant, and said, "Take them to the dungeon and question them."

"Yes, ma'am," the sergeant replied.

The guards shackled the three prisoners and began to march them toward the castle. The sergeant, lingering behind, approached the princess.

"Your Highness," he said, with an awkward look, "how…thoroughly…do you want them questioned?"

Anna apprehended the sergeant's meaning instantly. If these men had, in fact, somehow aided in Lord Otos' attack on Elsa, then they might possess valuable information about what, if anything, was coming next. And there was a part of her that wanted to see them suffer. But even the Crown wasn't above the law—including the laws pertaining to torture—and Anna didn't want Elsa to return to a throne tarnished by scandal…or stained with blood.

"Keep it legal," Anna replied. "But inside of that, be as creative as you need to be."

"Yes, ma'am," the sergeant said. He stood there for a moment.

"Oh, um, you're dismissed," Anna said.

"Thank you, Highness," the sergeant said, and hurried off after his men.

***

Kristoff made his way through the forest as best he could, given the slickness of the ground and the awkwardness of his burden. Elsa wasn't very heavy, but she was tall enough that carrying her in his arms through the trees—without bashing her head into one of them—had proved an impossible task. He had ended up throwing her over his shoulder in a manner that she no doubt would have found undignified had she been conscious.

It didn't help that his vision was blurred by the mix of hot tears and cold rain that pooled in his eyes and ran down his face. He hadn't been able to go after Sven; once the reindeer went under the muddy water's surface, Kristoff could no longer see him, and no doubt Sven had been carried away too swiftly for Kristoff to keep up on foot, anyway. Even if he could have, there wasn't much that even a strong ice-man like himself could do to rescue a four-hundred-pound reindeer from the powerful current.

And there was still the Queen to think of. So now, he staggered as quickly as he could through the woods, even as he wept.

"Sven," he sobbed. "You were my b-best friend. You always sh-shared your c-carrots, even if I h-had to remind you. I'm gonna miss you, b-buddy…I'm gonna miss you so much..."

A warm muzzle landed gently on his neck, nuzzling the side of his face comfortingly.

"Th-Thanks, boy. You always- SVEN!" he cried, practically scaring the reindeer out of his hide.

"What- How-?"

Sven mimed holding his breath, then reared up and cycled his front hooves in a swimming motion. Coming back down on all fours, the reindeer circled his head as if it were floating in slowly swirling water.

"You swam with the current," Sven interpreted, "and then got out of the river when you reached an eddy. You are one smart reindeer!"

Sven licked the side of Kristoff's face as the ice-man threw his free arm around the reindeer's neck.

Then his eyes flicked to the human load over his right shoulder. "Hey, we're almost there; you up to carrying us the rest of the way to the troll village?"

Sven snorted and bent his four legs as if to say, Get on already.

"Sorry, boy. I've gotta stop underestimating you!"

***

Anna, Gerda, and the two bodyguards passed through the center of town. People looked variously somber and nervous as they went about their business.

"News travels fast, Highness," Gerda said.

Anna looked ahead and saw a crowd of people filing into the cathedral. Curious, she approached, and the crowd parted for the Princess.

Inside, there was an array of lit candles, and one by one, people were passing in front of it and lighting more of them. Each of them murmured something as they lit a candle, and Anna moved closer to hear.

A middle-aged woman lit a candle and whispered, "Please save our Queen."

An old man lit another. "Please save our Queen."

A small boy, helped by his mother, lit a candle. "Please save our Queen," the child said.

Anna had managed to keep the worst of her fears about Elsa at bay, but now she felt a sharp pang of guilt. What if Elsa needed her? What if she were dying, and Anna wasn't there to hold her hand, and say goodbye?

She shook her head sharply. No. Thinking about such things was worse than pointless—too much depended on her being in the here and now.

Anna looked past the candles and saw that the line of people waiting to light them went down one of the cathedral's two main aisles and back up the other. As the princess backed away toward the cathedral door, a small, slightly disheveled girl in a blue hair bow approached her.

"Princess Anna?" the child asked timidly. "Is Queen Elsa gonna be okay?"

She swallowed and reminded herself that she needed to be strong for her people. Especially the small ones.

"I hope so, sweetie," Anna answered, smoothing the child's hair.

"I made this for her," the girl said, holding out a sheet of paper. On it was a crude pencil drawing of a woman with her hand outstretched, shooting a cloud of snowflakes over a crowd of smiling people—including a little one with a hair bow who was reaching up to catch the falling snow.

"I know she'll love it," Anna said as she accepted the picture.

A woman, presumably the girl's mother, approached from behind the child.

"Thank you, Princess," the woman said, curtsying respectfully. Then she led the girl away.

***

The rain was beginning to lighten as Kristoff, Sven, and the unconscious Elsa rode into the troll village—finding, as usual, a clearing full of scattered boulders. The trolls always camouflaged themselves this way whenever they heard someone approach.

"Grand Pabbie!" Kristoff shouted. "Please, I need help!"

The rocks rolled and then unrolled, the trolls popping up onto their feet en masse.

"I am here, Kristoff," said Grand Pabbie, waddling toward Kristoff as the young man lifted Elsa from Sven's shoulders.

"She's been poisoned," Kristoff said rapidly, "with something from the petals of the white iris. A doctor gave her medicine to slow it down." Kristoff took a gasping breath. "Please tell me I'm not too late."

"Bring her here," Grand Pabbie said, moving over by a rock outcropping covered in hanging moss. The troll pulled the moss aside to reveal a small cave that was filled with bottles and vials.

Kristoff laid Elsa on a flat rock next to the cave. Grand Pabbie came and looked at her for a moment.

"Elsa," he said. "If you can hear me, then you must listen. Your body can be purged of this poison, but the process is difficult, and dangerous. You will need to hold on to your life. You must think of that for which you most want to live, and keep that thought foremost in your mind."

Kristoff saw no sign that Elsa had heard Grand Pabbie's words, or that she was even still alive. Nonetheless, the aged troll began taking vials from the shelves and pouring their contents into a stone bowl.

As Kristoff stared, fears flew like a cloud of arrows through his mind. What if Elsa didn't make it? Anna didn't need to lose any more family. How would she cope while simultaneously being saddled with the burden of ruling Arendelle?

Someone seized Kristoff by the back of his collar and gently but firmly pulled him away from Grand Pabbie and Elsa.

"You done everything you can for her," said Bulda, Kristoff's adoptive mother. "Now let Grand Pabbie work. You and me got things to talk about."

"How can I think about anything else?" the human man replied as Bulda sat him next to her on a rock. "What if Elsa dies? She's my friend—one of the only ones I've got. And how am I supposed to break the news to Anna?"

"'What if' ain't helpin' nobody right now," Bulda said firmly. "Now, let's talk about you and Anna. 'Cause I hear you two been havin' some troubles."

"Where'd you hear that?"

Bulda crossed her arms. "You ain't the only human I talk to. Now tell me about you and that pretty princess."

"Well, we… _were_ having some problems," Kristoff confessed. "But Anna kind of...straightened me out, this morning."

Bulda smiled. "I was hopin' she'd get around to that one of these days. Sometimes, the best thing your lover can do for you is call you on your BS."

"Mmm," Kristoff agreed, looking a bit sheepish and chuckling weakly.

"So what happened then?"

"Well, we…talked, and, um…"

Bulda smiled and nodded knowingly as she said, "Ohhh, I see. I hope you showed that girl a good time."

"Mama Bulda…," Kristoff said, his face reddening.

"Boy," she said firmly, "I did not raise you to be a lousy lover. Even on your first try."

"It…It was…Yes, she enjoyed it," he said, turning even redder.

"Oh, really?" she said with a hint of skepticism.

He looked at the ground. "Loudly. Several times."

"That's my boy," Bulda said, grinning. "So things are good between you two?"

"Yeah," Kristoff said. "They really are."

"Good. I was afraid I was gonna have to knock some sense into you."

"Um, you meant that figuratively, right?"

"Of course, baby," Bulda replied as a wooden club fell from behind her back and landed on the ground.

***

When Anna reached the Navy dock in Arendelle's port, Admiral Ostergard was there with one of his junior officers. They were having a heated discussion that Anna could hear even as she walked past the tall spotting tower at the water's edge and started down the dock toward them.

"Let me make sure I have this right," the admiral said, steel in his voice. "One of our patrol ships is almost three hours overdue, and no one thought to report it to me until now?"

"I'm sorry, sir," the younger man said. "It's...It's not actually that unusual, what with the rainy weather we've been having."

"This is Europe, lieutenant," Ostergard said pointedly. "If we can't operate effectively in the rain, then we can't operate effectively, period."

"Y- Yes, sir," the lieutenant replied, looking down at the floorboards of the dock. He looked up again when Anna and her small entourage arrived.

"Admiral," Anna said, "what's the situation?"

"Your Highness," the older officer said, bowing. The lieutenant followed suit about half a second later.

"I've just been informed," the admiral continued, "that one of our patrol ships is-"

"Sails ho!" cried a voice from above and behind them. Anna turned and saw a Navy sailor in the spotting tower, holding a spyglass in one hand and pointing out to sea with the other.

Admiral Ostergard was sixty if he was a day, but this didn't seem to stop him from jogging up the dock to the base of the tower and then climbing the ladder to the top. Impulsively, Anna ducked out from under the protection of Gerda's umbrella—Gerda shouting "Highness!" after her—and followed the admiral to and up the tower. Luckily, the rain had slowed to a drizzle.

By the time Anna reached the top, the admiral had taken a spyglass from the sailor on duty and was looking out to sea. Looking in the same direction with the naked eye, Anna could just make out something on the water that might or might not have been a ship.

"Admiral?" she said. "What do you see? Is it the patrol ship?"

After a long moment, the admiral abruptly lowered the spyglass and turned to the princess, his face stony.

"It's a warship," he said. "And it's not one of ours."

END CHAPTER 14 


	15. Chapter 15: The Duke

Chapter 15: The Duke

Admiral Ostergard turned to the sailor on duty, whose face was now sheet-white.

"Sound the alert."

The sailor snatched up a mallet and turned to a bell that hung behind him. He struck, _clang_ - _clang_ - _clang_ - _clang_ , then waited a moment and did it again, and again.

Turning back to the Anna, the admiral said, "Your Highness, I must ask you to return to the castle. There is no need to put yourself at risk by remaining here."

Anna almost took offense, then realized what the admiral really meant: that Anna was indispensable, because with Elsa incapacitated (that was how Anna chose to think of it), the princess was the only remaining leader whom the people of Arendelle would readily follow. The next person in line for the throne would be her Uncle Matteus, who had served as regent for the three years between her parents' deaths and Elsa's coming of age. But Matteus had always been much more interested in the animal kingdom than the kingdom of Arendelle; on the morning of Elsa's coronation, he had left for Borneo to make a comprehensive study of the wildlife there, and he hadn't been back since. And those in line after him were various cousins, mostly young and without leadership experience.

"Very well," Anna said, in the most regal tone she could manage. "I will watch from the castle towers. Good luck, Admiral."

"Thank you, your Highness," the man replied as Anna descended the ladder.

Hildy was at the tea shop, having a cup of chamomile to calm her nerves after hearing about Elsa. The buxom viscountess had tried to find Anna, but the princess seemed to be constantly on the move, and Hildy had concluded that she couldn't have done much for her friend, anyway, given how busy Anna was at the moment. Besides, there was work to be done here.

"So… you don't think Kjersti wants to go out with me?" said the blonde teenager who had come to take Hildy's empty cup and saucer but whom the viscountess had drawn into conversation.

"Johan," Hildy replied, "you need to learn to tell the difference between when a girl is just being friendly and when she's genuinely interested in you. You think Kjersti likes you because she smiles at you and touches you now and then, but she does that with a lot of boys; that's just her style. If she were actually attracted to you, she'd take it up a notch and find some excuse to sit in your lap or something."

"Oh," the boy said, clearly disappointed.

"Now, certain other girls," Hildy continued, "aren't nearly as outgoing as Kjersti. And when they smile at you that way, it really means something, because they don't do that for just anyone."

Seeing the boy's look of puzzlement, Hildy patted his shoulder and added, "Kiddo, I'm going to tell you something that a lot of young men need to hear: You need to grow a pair—of eyes."

She conspicuously turned her head toward a red-haired girl who was measuring out dried tea leaves behind the shop counter. Johan followed Hildy's gaze, and just then, the girl glanced up, her eyes meeting his for a moment. Her freckled face went slightly pink as she quickly looked back down at her work.

"Oh. I…wow," the boy replied, still looking in the redheaded girl's direction.

"That's why they call me the Love Goddess, sweetie," Hildy said with a smile.

"They do?" the boy said, his mind clearly no longer on the conversation.

"It'll catch on," Hildy replied. Then she took a few coins out of her purse as she said, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to-"

Suddenly, the big bell in the town square began to ring, sounding out four loud bongs at a time, over and over.

"Oh, crap," Johan gasped. "The last time they rang the bell that way was-"

"-when Weselton invaded," Hildy finished. "I'd better go."

She dropped the coins on the table and hurried out the door.

Anna had almost reached the castle when she saw black smoke beginning to rise from somewhere several blocks away. She could hear shouts issuing from that direction, as well.

She turned to her guards and Gerda, who was still carrying the big umbrella and was panting from the brisk pace of their walk back from the Navy dock. The woman wasn't as young as she used to be.

"Gerda," Anna said, "go help Kai and the staff get the castle ready. I'll be back soon."

"Yes, Highness," the older woman said, and headed for the gates.

"Ma'am," one of her guards said, "you should return to the castle, too."

The other guard added, "You don't want to be out here when-"

"Look, guys," Anna interrupted, "I know you're just doing your job. But if what's going on over there"—she pointed in the direction of the smoke—"can give me any clue about what we're up against, then I need to check it out. After that, we'll haul ass back to the castle."

"Y- Yes, ma'am," the first guard said.

"All right," she said, breaking into a jog. "Let's go! Double time!"

They had run about halfway there when Anna saw Hildy up ahead. She, too, was hurrying toward the source of the smoke, which now rose dense and black into the gray sky. Anna accelerated her pace and caught up to her friend.

"Hildy! What's going on?"

Pointing in the direction of the smoke as she ran, the curly-tressed young woman cried, "It's the armory!"

"Oh no," Anna half-whispered.

They rounded a corner, and the Royal Armory came into view. The two-story building's exterior walls were made of stone and thus could not catch fire, but the roaring flames leaping from every window made Anna believe that every last plank of wood inside must be burning.

A crowd was gathering, but the fire brigade—which was already on the scene, as its headquarters was only a block away—was keeping everyone well away from the burning structure. The people in the crowd didn't seem to need much convincing to keep their distance; the intense heat radiating from the flaming building seemed to provide plenty of motivation to stay away.

Hildy looked here and there, searching the crowd as she shouted, "Duke! Tilde!"

A stab of fear went through Anna's heart. What if the Duke and his daughter had been inside the armory when the fire started?

"Hildy!" a man's voice shouted. "Over here!"

Anna was relieved to see the Duke and Tilde emerge from the crowd. Hildy ran and embraced both of them at once.

"We're all right, sweetheart," the Duke reassured his stepdaughter. "We were on our way here when the fire broke out."

The man turned to Anna. "It happened very fast. The two guards at the door barely avoided being burned. And the two patrolling the interior...I just pray that they died quickly."

"Dear God," Anna breathed.

She looked around and saw a white-haired man—the fire marshal, judging from his overcoat—shouting orders at the fire bridgadesmen up on the water tower, who were connecting a hose to its base and lowering the other end to their teammates on the ground.

"You see smoke on any of those walls," the marshal said to his men, pointing to the buildings adjacent to the armory, "you spray them down, fast. But remember, we've only got so much water in that tower."

"Excuse me, Marshal?" Anna said, approaching the man from behind.

"Get lost," he said, beginning to turn around. "I'm in the middle of- oh, your Highness," he corrected as he saw who had spoken.

Anna didn't care; if the situation were reversed, she probably would have had a similar reaction to being interrupted. So she got right to the point.

"Was this fire set on purpose?"

"Definitely," the fire marshal replied. "Fire spreads fast, but it doesn't spread _this_ fast without help."

"Otos," Anna muttered darkly. Then she asked, "How soon until you can put it out?"

The Marshal inhaled. "Your Highness…we can't put this fire out."

"What?"

"Ma'am, I've been a brigadesman for more than thirty years. I've seen dozens of arson fires, set with every kind of accelerant from turpentine to whale oil. But whatever was used here isn't like anything I've ever seen. It burns so hot, my men can't even get close enough to throw water on it; hell, if it hadn't been raining all day, the buildings next door would probably already be on fire. We've got the hose, of course, but we'd use up all the water in the tower before we put out half the first floor. All we can do is keep the fire from spreading until it burns itself out."

"Which means," the Duke cut in as he and his daughters approached, "that everything in the armory is lost."

Anna looked at the increasingly large crowd in the street and noticed that a lot of the onlookers were young or middle-aged men. Many were probably off-duty soldiers who had come to the armory in response to the alarm bells.

Letting the Marshal return to his work, Anna turned to the Duke.

"How bad is that?" she asked.

"Very," the gray-haired nobleman replied. "Only those soldiers who were already on patrol or guard duty have their gear. Which means that three-quarters of the soldiers garrisoned here in the capitol will be unarmed and unarmored when the enemy arrives."

Anna took a deep breath, then coughed from the smoke, which she realized smelled just like the smoke that had hung in the air in the parlor where Elsa was attacked—solid evidence, she thought, that Otos was behind the armory fire. But Anna had a bigger problem right now.

"Okay," she said. "The castle guards have their own armory; they must have some spare weapons. And probably some extra overcoats," she added, remembering that although castle guards did not wear metal armor, their coats were woolen and lined with several layers of linen, providing good protection against blades and arrows, as well as the winter cold.

"A lot of people in town," Tilde said, "have heirloom weapons hanging on their walls and such."

"Right," Hildy added. "A few of the nobles have pretty big collections. The Duke and I toured them all when we were working on his _Annotated History_."

"And there are quite a few around the castle, too," Anna said.

"Then, Highness, if I may," the Duke said, "I would like to send some of the soldiers gathered here with you to collect whatever you can spare from the castle. Tilde, take a group to our house and equip them as best you can with what we have. Hildy, take another group to the homes where those collections you mentioned are."

"Sure," Hildy said. "But I'm not sure how easily our local nobles will give up their precious conversation pieces."

"My dear," the Duke replied, "it has been my observation that your very presence is often enough to weaken a man's resolve. I do not doubt that you shall persuade them."

Halfdan yanked open the door of the suite he shared with Prince Hjalmar. Not seeing the prince in their sitting room, he strode into the doorway of Halmar's bedchamber and found the large, bearded young man there, standing in front of his open travel chest.

"There's no time to pack everything," Halfdan said. "War is going to break out here any minute, so just take the essentials. If we ride a few hours north, we can avoid the coast entirely and cross into Nordland via the- What are you doing?"

Hjalmar pulled his chainmail down over his head, then reached for the heavy leather belt he always wore with it to take some of the weight off of his shoulders.

"Like you said," the Prince replied, "war is going to break out any minute."

"It isn't _our_ war," Halfdan said. "Look, if you're trying to prove your courage-"

"I'm trying to help a friend."

"A friend? You have no friends here. This is madness."

"Then go back to Nordland without me."

"I'm in enough trouble with the King and Queen as it is," Halfdan said bitterly, "for getting caught banging the Hermosan prime minister's wife." Then, pointing a finger at Hjalmar, Halfdan spat, "And I am _not_ returning without their son, no matter how thick-headed and defective he is! So you take off that damned armor and-"

Hjalmar struck Halfdan in the side of the head with the back of his mailled fist. The man fell sideways onto the bed, unconscious.

"Perhaps they'll forgive you if they know I gave you no choice," Hjalmar said. "Goodbye, Halfdan."

The big man took his wooden shield from his trunk, thrust his axe through his belt, and walked out the door.

Olaf burst through the service entrance to the castle, shouting "Anna! Anna, where are you?"

Kai, who was serially dispatching servants to various parts of the castle to make certain that the structure's many doors and windows were secure, paused in mid-instruction and turned to the snowman with an expression of substantial irritation.

"The Princess is not here!" he barked. "She is dealing with a national crisis and needs no distractions."

"Oh," Olaf said. "That's good. Because that means she's okay. She's okay, right? Not like…like Elsa?"

Kai's face softened. "Yes, the Princess is all right."

"Good," Olaf said. "That's…That's good."

Approaching the snowman, Kai said, "You know, there is a young man in the courtyard who could do with some company. He's going to be evacuated with the other princes soon, but perhaps you would like to pay him a visit before he goes."

"Young man?" Olaf said. "Oh! Prince High Pattycake!"

"Um, yes, something like that," Kai said awkwardly.

"Great!" the snowman said, already jogging away with his odd gait. "I'll go see him right now!"

When Hjalmar stepped out into the corridor, the doors of most of the nearby guest suites were open, revealing flurries of activity within. In addition, Baron Herringholtz was standing at the end of the hallway.

"I have made arrangements," the baron said, "to transport you all to a safer location inland. A set of carriages is waiting by the gates."

"I'm not going anywhere," Hjalmar growled.

Prince Sefu, artfully balanced on his stilts, looked at Hjalmar and said thoughtfully, "None of us will be marrying the Queen of Arendelle if she is deposed by the Dianisians." Then, more firmly, he declared, "I will stay and fight, as well."

"But Prince," protested his attendant, Mofa, "we do not even know if the Queen is still alive."

Dr. Montalvo stuck his head out the door of his and Prince Javier's suite and said, "The rock trolls of this land are rumored to have healing magic unknown to mortal men. If anyone can save the Queen, it is they."

Then the doctor looked back over his shoulder and shouted, "Prince, please, come out of the closet!" Ignoring Prince Gormal's snickering, Dr. Montalvo went on, "I am certain that the Dianisians have not deployed any sort of biological weapon!"

"Yes, I imagine King Heracasthenes said the same thing in 216 BC," the prince replied, "before the Dianisians began catapulting dead horses over his city walls!"

"If you will excuse me," Dr. Montalvo said to the others with a sigh before closing the door.

"We must make haste, your Highness," Hamish said to Prince Gormal. "Those carriages won't wait forever."

"Mmm," Gormal replied, glancing at Prince Sefu. "But methinks the Mianyokan has a point." Then, taking up his bow, he added, "Besides, how often does a hunter get a chance to stalk the most dangerous game?"

Mofa frowned. "I do not think the Dianisians will be bringing lions with them."

"What about snakes?" Prince Sefu asked nervously. Mofa shook his head.

Gormal, rolling his eyes, said, "I'm not talking about snakes, or lions, or bloody dead horses. The most dangerous game is man!"

Prince Varek, for whom Popov had been interpreting the conversation to this point, looked confused and then spoke to Popov, who nodded and then translated the prince's words.

"Not correct. Most dangerous game crossbow roulette. Many die just deciding who go first."

Anna was glad to finally reach the castle's south tower. Even her normally abundant energy was starting to run low after all the walking, running, and stair-climbing she'd done in the last half-hour.

Upon arriving, Anna was greeted by two people who appeared to be little older than herself and who introduced themselves as her Army and Navy liaisons. The Navy man, his red hair neatly cut beneath his hat, was an ensign, if Anna was reading correctly the insignia on his blue uniform. And Anna was slightly surprised to see that the green-uniformed Army officer—a lieutenant, maybe?—was a woman, her dirty-blonde hair tied back in a braid, like Tilde's.

Before either of them could say more, Anna glanced out the window and noticed something unexpected.

"Why haven't any of the ships at the Navy dock been launched?" she asked the ensign, pointing at the four slender sailing vessels tied up there.

"I was about to tell you, ma'am," the young man said. "The rudder chains on all four have been sabotaged. Repairs are underway now; I'll give you a time estimate as soon as I have it.

"The good news," he continued, "is that the galleons"—he pointed to a half-dozen ships anchored in the harbor, each considerably larger than the four docked interceptors—"seem to be fully functional. The saboteur probably decided he couldn't get to them without being spotted. The Harbor Patrol is helping us get the crews out to them as quickly as possible; our flagship, the _King Agnarr_ , should raise anchor in a few minutes."

Anna looked out to sea. She could now clearly see with her naked eye the Dianisian-flagged ship that she had barely been able to make out with the spyglass earlier. And there were other ships behind that one—at least ten, and who knew how many more in their wake.

She turned to the Army woman. "How are the troops? Are the Duke and his daughters having any luck arming them?"

"Some, ma'am," the lieutenant replied. "But not nearly enough. At this point, it looks like more than half of our troops will be facing the enemy with makeshift weapons and no armor."

"That's not going to cut it," Anna said. "King Aegeus is desperate. He's going to throw everything he's got at us."

"Yes, ma'am. We do have a cavalry unit stationed just outside of town that will be here soon. And we are summoning reinforcements from the interior."

"Hmm," said Anna. "How many-"

"Your Highness!" a familiar male voice called. Anna turned and saw Baron Herringholtz approaching, flanked by a pair of guards who stopped him before he got close to Anna.

"I came to inform you," the Baron said, "that the princes have refused to evacuate—save for Prince Rajiv, whom I have been unable to locate, and the boy, Tomas, to whom I have given no choice in the matter. The rest, for reasons of their own, have elected to stay and fight."

"Well, I won't refuse the help," Anna replied. "But…Rajiv is missing? What about Ajay? Captain Anand, I mean."

"Neither has been seen since midmorning," Herringholtz replied. "It seems unlikely that they have fled; all of their belongings are still here, as is the crew of their ship. Also, Prince Sefu's attendant, Mofa, recalled their saying something about a meeting."

"A meeting with who? And where?"

"He didn't know with whom, but he believed the meeting was to take place somewhere in the castle."

The wheels in Anna's head began to turn. The Dianisians had tried to take out Elsa, almost certainly because of her powers. And now it was public knowledge that Rajiv had powers of his own. What if they had wanted him out of the way, as well?

Grasping her owl pendant, Anna thought, _I'll bet my new necklace that that's what those phony guards were up to_ _._ _And since they were trying to leave on foot, Rajiv and Ajay—or, oh God, their bodies—must still be here._

Anna turned to the trio of pages—including Max, the new boy—who were standing by in case the princess needed to send a message. She pointed to Max.

"The maid staff know the castle better than anyone. Find Gerda and tell her to have them search every guest room, meeting room, pantry, and broom closet in the place until Prince Rajiv and Captain Anand are found."

"Yes, your Highness!" the boy said, and ran off.

"Highness," Herringholtz said, the guards still eyeing him. "There is something else. The boy talked about a flask of something highly flammable that Lord Otos used to escape the Queen's ice."

"Yes," Anna replied. "And it looks like he used the same thing to burn down the armory."

Herringholtz nodded gravely. "Then I fear that the stories may be true."

"What stories?" the princess replied.

"Centuries ago," the matchmaker began, "there was a war among all the kingdoms of the Greek peninsula."

"The Pan-Hellenic War," Anna said, remembering the history lessons of her youth. "It started out as a border dispute between two kingdoms, but eventually they all got pulled into it. There was so much destruction that they finally stopped fighting and signed a peace agreement."

Nodding, Herringholtz said, "That much is well documented. But some historians assert, on the basis of rather slim evidence, that the signing of the armistice was precipitated by the introduction of a new weapon—a liquid so flammable that a few gallons of it, properly applied, could burn an entire village to the ground within minutes. Those who believe that this substance existed call it 'Greek fire.'"

Anna's eyes widened, but the wheels in her head kept turning.

"But...if this weapon was so powerful, why hasn't it been used since then?"

"Allegedly, after the Dianisians invented Greek fire, two of the enemy kingdoms obtained the formula by spycraft or reverse engineering. As a result, large parts of every kingdom on the peninsula were soon reduced to ash. And so the peace agreement they signed included an unspoken clause: that the kingdoms that possessed the formula would never again use it on Greek soil—nor anywhere else, except in dire emergency. The royal families have kept the formula a secret ever since."

"I guess King Aegeus decided that Dianisia's economic meltdown qualifies as a dire emergency."

"Quite. One wonders how the formula has been kept so well hidden for so long a time. Even today, historians who believe in Greek fire can only speculate about its ingredients."

Anna thought back to the strange smell of the smoke in the parlor and in the streets around the armory, and something clicked.

"Is it possible," she said slowly, "that those ingredients include sulfur and pine pitch?"

Now it was Herringholtz's eyes that widened.

"Yes, your Highness, that is very possible."

"Damn it," Anna muttered, not caring who heard. "They've been setting this up for months! _Right_ under our noses!" she cried as she smacked her fist into her palm. "God, how did I not see it?"

"Highness," Herringholtz said, "as I understand it, before this week your responsibilities chiefly involved bottles of inexpensive champagne and oversized pairs of scissors. I hardly think you can blame yourself. And it is clear that these events are the result of very careful planning."

"You're not kidding," Anna replied. "Not only did they have a plan _and_ a backup plan for killing my sister, but they even brought a fire weapon to use in case both of those plans failed."

"As King Aegeus is known to say, 'Plan for success, but be prepared for failure.'"

Before Anna could respond, the young ensign approached.

"Excuse me, your Highness? The _King Agnarr_ has weighed anchor and is heading toward the enemy fleet. The other galleons are nearly ready to do the same."

Anna rushed back to the window to watch, focusing on the Dianisian fleet.

"What's that smaller ship behind the Dianisian's lead galleon?"

Squinting into his spyglass, the young Navy officer said, "It's definitely not a standard Dianisian naval vessel. It looks like a modified carrack."

A page had brought Anna a spyglass of her own, which she now looked through.

"There's something sticking out of the front. Like a brass pole, or a tube."

"I don't know what that is."

The _Agnarr_ and the Dianisian galleon drew closer, and the crews of each vessel began firing their ballistas at each other. The accuracy of these giant crossbows was not spectacular, and the first several shots missed, but as the distance closed, the Arendellan ship managed to score a hit on the enemy galleon's foresail and rigging, causing the Dianisian crew to scramble to repair or replace the cut lines.

Now the smaller ship that had been sailing in the enemy galleon's wake came around its larger partner, keeping the Dianisian galleon between itself and the _Agnarr_ until it was less than a hundred yards away. Then it pulled out in front of the galleon.

Apparently sensing a threat, the _Agnarr_ 's crew fired a ballista shot at the smaller vessel. The bolt struck, but too high, sticking harmlessly into an unoccupied portion of the Dianisian ship's deck.

The small ship was about fifty yards from the _Agnarr_ when, from the brass tube in the smaller ship's bow, a stream of fire shot forth. It flew in an arc and struck the galleon's deck, then the sails, instantly setting both ablaze. Through the spyglass, Anna could see sailors on fire, running and flailing, flinging themselves over the ship's rail into the sea. The remaining crew did their best to fight the fire, but it was clear that they were already losing the fight.

As she numbly watched her kingdom's flagship burn, Anna knew one thing: that although the other vessels of Arendelle's navy would be more cautious of the fire-ships, whatever success they might have against the Dianisian fleet would only delay the inevitable. The enemy was coming to her kingdom's shores, and this war would have to be won on land…if it was to be won at all.

END CHAPTER 15


	16. Chapter 16: The Saboteur

Chapter 16: The Saboteur

Olaf bounded into the courtyard and was delighted to see his new young friend sitting on a stone bench at the far end.

"Prince Hypatia!" the snowman cried. "How are you?"

"Hey, Olaf," the boy said glumly as he raised his head. His eyes were red, and his cheeks were wet.

"Oh no!" the snowman cried. "Are you melting? Here!"

Olaf grabbed hold of the boy and pulled him close, sharing the little flurry of snow that followed the snowman everywhere he went.

"There you go, Hyacinth! You'll be solid again in no time!"

"Thanks, but…" the boy said, backing out of Olaf's wooden arms, "…I'm not melting." He cast his gaze down at the courtyard floor and said, "I'm a coward."

"You take care of cows? I didn't know princes did that."

"N- No, I, I take care of goats. And I'm not a pri-"

"Then where does the cow part come in?"

"What I mean is…when Lord Otos attacked Queen Elsa, I…I didn't do anything. I just sat there, watching. I didn't try to stop him—I didn't even yell until…until he came after me."

The boy looked up at Olaf again, and now water was running out of his eyes as he said, "She was so nice to me, and I didn't even try to help her. I just…froze. That's why I'm a coward."

"Didn't you stop her from eating those poison chocolates?" Olaf asked. "I'd call that helping."

"I guess."

"Besides, Prince Hyperion, if a lady with magical ice powers couldn't stop that O-Toad guy, what could you have done? Maybe freezing was the right thing to do. And I'm not just saying that because I'm a snowman."

The boy looked back up at Olaf. His eyes seemed to be leaking less now.

"M- My name isn't Prince Hypatios, or…whatever it was you said," the boy explained. "It's Tomas."

Olaf put his hands to his mouth, staring at the prince with big eyes. Then he threw his arms in the air.

"Oh, thank goodness! That is SO much easier to say!"

Even though the boy was clearly not in the best of spirits, Olaf's exclamation made him chuckle weakly.

"So where are all your prince pals?" Olaf asked.

"They all decided to stay here and fight," Tomas replied. "Except Prince Rajiv. Nobody knows where he is. I hope he's okay."

"I'm sure he's fine. He's got fire powers now, you know." Nudging Tomas in the ribs with his wooden elbow, Olaf added, "Guess he's a little hot under the collar."

Tomas gave another feeble chuckle. "That's awful."

"He and Elsa must have had a heated argument."

"That's a little better."

"I'll be the guy has a hot temper."

"Now you're back to awful."

"Some people are just hotheads."

"Please stop," Tomas said, giggling nonetheless.

***

Anna was watching the enemy ships approach when the sound of an authoritative voice caused her to turn around.

"Highness," the Captain of the Guard said, "these two men wanted to speak with you. They say it's urgent—vital to the defense of the kingdom."

Behind the Captain were two other guards, both keeping an eagle eye on the pair of men between them—Henrik and Grimmjaw, the rival ice-men with whom Kristoff had fought the previous evening.

"What brings you here?" Anna said, eying them skeptically.

"Well…" said the blonde-bearded Henrik, "there's this fellow we know…"

"Not personally, you understand," the dark-haired Grimmjaw said. "He's a fellow we know of."

"Yes, we know _of_ him," Henrik agreed.

"Guys," Anna said, "I'm in the middle of an invasion, here. Is there a point you're trying to get to?"

"Um, yeah," Grimmjaw said. "We saw the armory fire, and that fellow we know of…well, he's got a caravel anchored off of Tan Sands."

Anna knew the place—a sandy beach not far from the port. It was a popular launch and landing spot used by fishermen in the daytime and, it was rumored, by smugglers at night.

"If you was to send some men aboard," Henrik added, "they'd find a load of weapons and armor about to be smuggled out of Arendelle. Chainmail, swords, crossbows, all that."

Anna turned to the pages standing ready nearby. "Go tell the Duke about the caravel. And tell him he's authorized to board it and seize any armor and weapons he finds."

"Yes, your Highness," the boy said, running off.

Despite Anna's having a hundred more pressing things to deal with, the princess' curiosity got the better of her.

"Why are you two helping me like this?"

"Well," said Henrik, "it's not like we want to hand Arendelle over to a bunch of olive-munching foreigners. And, well…"

"We always thought," Grimmjaw interjected, "that you made Bjorgman the Ice Master because...you know…"

"Because we're lovers?" Anna said, having no time to mince words.

"Y- Yeah," Grimmjaw replied.

"So last night," Henrik said, "when we had that little...disagreement…with Bjorgman at the One-Eyed Wharf Rat, we figured you'd take his side and have us thrown out of the place. Maybe even into the dungeon."

"But instead, you took our side," Grimmjaw added. "You were fair. Maybe fairer than we deserved. So...I s'pose we misjudged you…" The man inclined his head as he finished, "...Highness."

"So…" Henrik said, "if there's anything else a couple of civilians could do to help…"

Nodding thoughtfully , Anna said, "Actually, I think there is."

***

"Highness!" Doctor Montalvo shouted to his charge, who was still cowering in the closet. "We must flee the castle and seek refuge elsewhere."

"What!?" Prince Javier cried. "We cannot leave the castle; there is about to be fighting in the streets! What if the Dianisians pursue and kill us? Even worse, what if they merely wound us, and we die slowly of some horrible infection?"

"Those things are more likely to happen if we remain here, Highness," the doctor replied.

"I- I cannot move," the prince replied shakily. "My legs will not obey me! No doubt it is peripheral nerve damage caused by my leprosy."

Dr. Montalvo reached into his bag and, after a moment's rummaging, produced two red pills. He held them out to the prince through the door.

"I have been saving these for an emergency," the doctor said. "They will give you the strength of a lion, and the courage of two."

The prince hesitated for a moment, then snatched the pills from Montalvo's hand and swallowed them, not even bothering with a sip of water.

Five seconds passed silently. Then Prince Javier spoke, almost to himself.

"Oh, yes, that's…that's better."

"Good," Dr. Montalvo replied. "Now, I've packed most of your belongings. If we hurry, the carriages Baron Herringholtz hired to evacuate us will-"

"Evacuate?" the prince interrupted. "Nonsense!"

"What?"

Throwing on his arming coat—a long coat with protective layers, like the castle guards' overcoats—Javier said, "We will join the others in the fight. Those Dianisian dogs will not spoil my suit for Queen Elsa's hand!"

"But my Prince," Montalvo pleaded as the prince belted a long rapier to his waist, "it would be unwise to-"

"To the battle!" Javier cried, and he dashed out the door.

Montalvo, jogging after him, sighed, "Perhaps two pills was too many."

***

"Olaf?" Tomas said. "Do you know any other kids my age?"

"Sure I do!" Olaf cried cheerfully. "Lots of them! Kids seem to like me. Their parents, ehhhh…."

"Then...can I ask you a favor?"

"Of course! What is it?"

The boy looked around for a moment, then began whispering in Olaf's ear.

***

The moment Henrik and Grimmjaw left the rooftop, Anna returned to the window where her two military liaisons had stationed themselves.

"Highness," the young Navy officer said, "the enemy ships are coming within range of the castle-based ballistas. The shore-based ones will soon be able to fire on them, as well."

"Good," Anna said. "But make sure the ballista crews know that they should flee if one of the fire ships gets close enough to spray them."

"Their commanding officer will have briefed them, Highness. In any case-"

Just then, Anna heard someone—presumably the officer in charge of the various ballista teams on the castle battlements—shout, "Ready…Fire!"

Anna turned to look as she heard the deep twang of half a dozen giant crossbow strings firing their big, arrow-like projectiles. And then she was nearly blinded as all six ballistas suddenly burst into brilliant flame before her eyes.

Instantly realizing what had happened, Anna ran down the tower stairs onto the battlements. Men who had caught fire were rolling on the stone rooftop, trying to extinguish their burning clothing.

"Keep away from the ballistas!" Anna shouted at the crews. "You can't put the fires out!"

Then Anna turned to a page, who had followed her down the stairs along with her two military liaisons.

"Run down and warn the shore crews that we've been sabotaged. Tell them not to fire unless they've inspected their weapons thoroughly for something sticky, like pine pitch. Got it?"

"Got it!" the page replied, then ran off downstairs into the castle.

"Highness," said the approaching sergeant—presumably in charge of the ballista crews on the battlements. "How did this happen?"

"I'm guessing," Anna replied, "that Otos put Greek fire in the grooves of the ballistas. When they were fired, the friction of the bolts against the grooves made the stuff light up, like striking a match."

"This Otos has been very busy," the Army liaison said with a hint of anger.

"He's had days," Anna replied, similarly irate. "All the time he needed to sabotage us half to death."

But even as she said the words, she wondered whether they were really true. Surely, the interceptors were sailed or at least checked daily; the ballistas must have some regular schedule of inspections and maintenance; and there would be guard patrols in the armory that would notice any sticky liquid spread around the place if given enough time to discover it.

No, Anna concluded, all of the sabotage would have to have been done in a very short time frame to keep it from being noticed before the Dianisian forces arrived. Which raised a troubling question: Could Otos really have done all of it by himself?

***

Ajay was sitting back, watching raptly as the lovely Persian belly dancer gave him a private performance. Her movements were graceful and sinuous, as mesmerizing as her gorgeously curvaceous body.

"Parisa, my dear," Ajay said with a smile. "Rarely have the gods seen fit to bestow such large measures of both talent and beauty upon one woman."

She moved toward him, her long limbs seemingly moving independently of one another and yet in perfect synchrony, like four separate dancers performing in concert. As she drew near, Ajay could see her eyes above the veil that covered the rest of her face. They were strange…yellow, with pupils like vertical black slits.

Her arms went around him and transformed into the coils of a Burmese python. Suddenly his entire body was trapped, immobilized by the snake's ropes of powerful muscle.

"But," he cried, "we're nowhere near Burma!"

His eyes flew open, and he realized he was bound, not by the coils of a snake, but by ropes and a gag. He was lying on a cold stone floor, the motionless Prince Rajiv next to him.

Ajay tried to speak, but his gag had been tied as expertly as his ropes. There was no bit of escape-artist trickery he could think of that would free him.

As best he could, he rolled over and nudged Prince Rajiv. The young man did not move.

Silently, Ajay prayed that the prince was merely unconscious.

***

The naval battle was effectively over. All of the galleons were either disabled or in flames. A couple of the interceptors were still out there, but because they dared not get too close to the fire ships, the small Arendellan vessels could do little more than harass the enemy.

Now, the Dianisan armada sailed unimpeded toward Arendelle's shores. The larger ships anchored themselves where the Arendellan galleons had been; the smaller ones tied up at the naval and civilian docs, their crews' efforts only barely slowed by the small number of Arendellan troops that had managed to obtain crossbows before the armory went up in flames.

One small ship, protected by covering fire from two Dianisian interceptors, pulled right up to the waterfront in the heart of the port. A dozen cavalrymen, clad in plate armor and bearing lances, quickly rode down the ship's ramp and onto the cobblestone street. As soon as the last horse's hooves were on the pavement, the ship's crew rapidly pulled up the short gangplank and unmoored the ship.

"Oh, jeez," Anna said nervously. "This is it. We're being invaded."

"I wouldn't worry just yet," her Army liaison said, pointing. "Look."

Perhaps two city blocks inland, the cavalry unit that General Stark had summoned from outside the city was now riding into the market square. They moved with great order and precision, their lances pointing skyward for safety.

"Our most elite troops," the Army woman said proudly. "And mounted combat has never been the Dianisians' strong suit. Those boys are going to wish they'd stayed home."

At the unit captain's barked order, twelve of the cavalrymen—the maximum number that could ride side-by-side down the wide street that led to the waterfront—lined up to face the newly arrived enemy.

"That's odd," Anna's Navy liaison said distractedly. He was looking the opposite way, toward the Dianisians.

"What's odd?" Anna asked the young man.

The cavalry captain barked another order, audible but incoherent at this distance, and the line of Arendellan horsemen lowered their lances until they pointed dead ahead. At the same time, a second line of riders formed behind the first.

"That ship," the young naval officer said. "It's not a troop transport; it's one of the fire ships. It can only carry as many cavalry as you see there, so why would the Dianisians use it to deploy them?"

Anna looked at the ship, which, under oar power, seemed to be rotating in place, the bow swinging around to face the shore.

The cavalry captain barked again, and the first line of Arendellan riders charged toward the enemy. The Dianisian horsemen lowered their lances toward the Arendellans, seemingly ready to receive the charge.

"Oh, no," Anna whispered. Then she grabbed the Army officer's shoulder.

"This is a trick!" the princess shouted. "You have to stop them! NOW!"

The uniformed woman looked confused, but she clearly wasn't about to question a direct order from her acting commander-in-chief. She took a tin whistle out of her breast pocket and, leaning over the parapet, blew three loud blasts.

The Arendellan cavalrymen did not slow. The reason was clear: The clatter of their horses' iron shoes on the cobblestone street was drowning out any other sound.

As the Arendellans rapidly closed in, the Dianisian cavalry suddenly split, half of them breaking to the right and the other half to the left. Then Anna's hands flew to her mouth as liquid fire sprayed from the brass tube on the fire ship's bow, setting several of the Arendellan riders and their horses on fire. The animals wheeled about, throwing their flaming riders and, in some cases, trampling them as they thrashed or ran blindly away.

Anna could do nothing but close her eyes against the horrible sight. But that didn't make the screams any easier to bear.

***

Olaf was seated awkwardly on the courtyard bench, facing toward the door, when Kai entered.

"Olaf!" he shouted. "Where is the boy? I must get him to his carriage immediately!" Muttering, the servant added, "Curse me, I've been so busy preparing the castle, I nearly forgot about him. The poor child must be terrified."

"Um, I think he went to the little princes' room," Olaf said.

Kai squinted at Olaf. The snowman tried to act natural.

"Very well, I will seek him there," said Kai, and he disappeared back through the door.

After a moment, a muffled voice said, "Is he gone?"

"I'm pretty sure, yeah," Olaf replied.

Tomas leaned back rapidly, pulling his face from where it had been embedded in the back of Olaf's head. The front half of his body was covered from head to toe in snow.

"Oh my gosh," the boy said, rubbing his pale, numb cheeks. "I've never been that cold."

"That was pretty weird for me, too," Olaf said. "And I don't know what I looked like to Kai. He probably thought I'd gained forty pounds."

"Fifty," the boy corrected. "Now you'd better get going."

"Right," Olaf said, standing up. "Have you got someplace to hide?"

"The closet in my room upstairs," Tomas said. "Come find me after, okay?"

"Okay," the snowman said, giving the boy a hug.

***

Various princes and attendants had assembled just outside the main gates of the castle, walking out with the last of the evacuation carriages just before the gates were closed against the coming siege.

Prince Gormal, his attendant Hamish, Prince Hjalmar, and Prince Varek's attendant Popov were clad in chainmail, while Prince Varek himself wore a steel cuirass. Prince Javier was wearing his arming coat. Prince Sefu and Mofa wore no armor, but both were wielding long spears, and Prince Sefu carried the shield the length of his body—not including the height added by his stilts. Dr. Montalvo had no armor or weapons but carried his leather bag, apparently ready to serve as the group's medic if the need arose.

Looking down at Sefu's stilts and then up at his face, Gormal asked skeptically, "How exactly are you meant to move around on the battlefield in those things?"

A bit defensively, the African prince replied, "You would be surprised at the swiftness they afford."

Before Gormal could reply, Prince Hjalmar cut in.

"We need a plan," he said gruffly.

"Quite right!" Prince Javier agreed, brandishing his rapier with dangerous enthusiasm. "We must use clever tactics if we are to win the day."

"What we need," Gormal said, "is a blind—a place from which we can observe the enemy's approach, and then strike without warning."

Popov nodded as Prince Varek whispered something into his ear.

"We know just right place," the gray-bearded attendant said. "Follow, please."

***

"Excuse me, sir!" Olaf shouted out the carriage window. "This is my stop!"

The driver pulled over. Olaf looked at the boy across from him, who was dressed in the finery of a Dianisian prince. His face was half hidden by a royal-blue scarf.

Loudly, Olaf said, "Farewell, Prince Hippodrome!"

"Thanks for helping my family get out of town before the invasion, Olaf," the boy whispered.

"Thanks for getting all dressed up for the occasion, Simon," Olaf whispered back as he exited the carriage.

Several people—an adult couple, an old man, and two small girls—got into the carriage as Olaf got out. Olaf was relieved to see them, given that thick black smoke was starting to rise from somewhere down by the docks and was visibly creeping inland.

"Wait a minute," the driver protested. "Who are those people?"

"Oh, you know," Olaf replied. "The prince's servants, attendants, hairstylist…These royalty types don't go anywhere without an entor- antouri- a bunch of other people." Then, before the driver could speak again, the snowman cried "Have a nice trip!" and bounded away.

***

Lord Otos tried not to let his success go to his head. In the space of four days, he had infiltrated Arendelle's royal court, provided the Dianisian invasion force with substantial intelligence on the kingdom's defenses, sabotaged many of those defenses, and, most importantly, removed this land's witch-queen from play. Evading capture and managing to meet up with a platoon of Dianisian crossbowmen was just extra tzatziki sauce on his lamb.

"The best route is to the south and around the exterior castle wall," Otos was explaining. "Be sure to watch for crossbows and counter-siege weapons as you approach. Hydra Company will be laying siege from the other side, but that won't distract all of the defenders." He smiled and added, "Remember the words of our king: Plan for success, but-"

"Otos!"

The Dianisian nobleman jerked his head around toward the source of the sound. There on the cobblestone road, about forty feet inland and eight feet uphill from where Otos was standing, stood a massive reindeer. Mounted on its back were the ice-man Kristoff and, in front of him, the Queen.

Even at this distance, Otos could see the cold fury in the woman's ice-blue eyes as she fixed him in her gaze and spoke to him with a voice like iron.

"Be prepared for failure."

END CHAPTER 16 


	17. Chapter 17: The Queen

Chapter 17: The Queen

"No," Otos gasped, pointing at her. " _No!_ You cannot be alive! The white-iris poison has no antidote! And even if it did, you could never have received it in time!"

"When I was a child," Elsa said evenly as she dismounted the reindeer, "a boy in a village near here was skating on the river and fell through the ice. The current pulled the boy downstream, and it took the villagers nearly an hour to rescue him from the icy water. Yet they were able to revive him. Because the cold had kept him alive."

Stepping in front of the reindeer and calmly facing the dozen armed men before her, Elsa added, "Just as it kept me alive."

"It will make little difference," Otos growled. Then, turning to the troops behind him, he barked, "Ready crossbows!"

***

Elsa had been feeling weak from the aftereffects of the poison, but she had nonetheless insisted that Kristoff bring her to the waterfront instead of her bedchamber at the castle. And now that she saw the invading troops, anger had given her new strength. Finding these interlopers on the streets of her kingdom felt little different from finding them in her bedroom—or Anna's. That last thought stoked her anger into something approaching fury.

In a low voice, she said to Kristoff, "You and Sven stay behind me."

"Elsa," Kristoff hissed, "remember what Grand Pabbie said: Using too much of your power before you've fully recovered could kill you!"

"Don't worry," Elsa replied, fixing her gaze on the Dianisian soldiers who were now pointing crossbows in her direction. "I won't need to use _much_."

***

Kristoff ducked down, and Sven dropped as low as his four legs would allow just as Otos shouted "Fire!"

Kristoff closed his eyes as the barrage of crossbow bolts assailed them—some whizzing past, others spanging off something solid. The moment it was over, Kristoff whipped his head up.

"Elsa!" he shouted. "Are you all ri-"

What he saw struck him silent. Elsa was still standing in front of him, but in place of her blue gown, her body was now clad in a suit of plate armor formed entirely from ice. In her left hand she held a hexagonal shield, and in her right, a glistening ice-sword.

"Holy shit," Kristoff breathed.

Elsa cried "HaaaaaAAAAH!" and charged forward, sword held high.

She brought her blade down at the head of the foremost crossbowman. Surprised, the Dianisian soldier only barely managed to raise his weapon high enough to protect his himself before the sword struck, demolishing the crossbow and causing the man to stumble backward and fall.

The other soldiers dropped their crossbows and, almost as one, drew their short swords and began to fan out around Elsa.

Mama Bulda had given Kristoff her wooden club—"in case you need to knock some sense into somebody," as she had put it. Kristoff pulled the weapon out of his belt.

"Looks like we'd better get in there," the ice-man said to Sven.

The reindeer snorted in agreement. Then they charged.

***

From Anna's position in the castle tower, it appeared that the Dianisian fleet had finished deploying all of the troops it had brought. Now, Anna watched in disbelieving horror as the fire ships began spraying the port with flame.

"What are they doing?" she cried. "They want this kingdom for themselves, don't they? Why burn the warehouses, the chandlers' shops, the customs office?"

"I think," the Navy liaison said, "they're doing it…for you, Highness."

"What?"

"They want you to surrender. So they're showing you how much damage they can do if you refuse."

"I am NOT surrendering to these marauders," Anna growled. "I'll let them kill me first."

"They won't kill you," the officer replied. "More likely, they'll kill everyone else and make you watch."

***

Prince Javier crowded with the other princes and attendants as they peered through the gaps of the One-Eyed Wharf Rat's shuttered windows. It was dark inside the old tavern, in sharp contrast with the streets outside; although the sun remained behind a thick shroud of clouds, several burning buildings nearby gave off quite a bit of light. Even large patches of the pavement in the square outside burned, coated with the flammable liquid being sprayed in gouts from the Dianisian fire ships.

The princes and attendants had not yet engaged the enemy, but they were already down a man. Prince Hjalmar had been unable to keep up with the group for some reason, and in the interest of getting into position in a timely fashion, they had had to leave him behind. Prince Javier wondered whether the man was unwell. He showed no outward signs of illness—and Javier knew them all—but it could be something in its early stages. Or perhaps the prince had a heart condition. He was too young for atherosclerosis or advanced syphilis, but a congenital malformation couldn't be ruled out, particularly given the tendency of royal families toward inbreeding.

But he could chat with Dr. Montalvo about these matters at a later time. Right now he needed to focus on tactical concerns.

"Ah-ha," Prince Gormal said, squinting through a different shuttered window. "I think our opportunity has arrived. Look."

Javier looked out and saw that a squad of about a dozen enemy infantry was moving on its own on the far side of the square, out of sight of the other Dianisian units. But there was a problem.

"They're isolated, certainly," Javier agreed. "But there is a large area of burning pavement between our position and theirs. We will have to go around it, and that will probably cost us the element of surprise. Not that that worries me," the Hermosan prince added, brandishing his rapier.

"Then we will need a distraction," said Prince Sefu. "Which I will provide."

The Mianyokan prince threw open the shutters of one of the windows, then somehow managed to maneuver his stilted legs through it, his spear and shield in hand. Mofa's eyes went wide as he watched the young man prepare to leap out into the field of flames, which rose about a foot from the ground.

"Please, Highness, do not do this!" Mofa cried. "The very ground is on fire!"

"Yes," Sefu growled, looking intently at the enemy. "And where there is so much fire, there can be no snakes."

The prince landed on his stilted feet and ran forward in a silent charge.

***

Elsa blocked a Dianisian trooper's sword attack with her shield, then counterattacked with her own sword, which the man only barely avoided by backing quickly away.

Panting, she looked at her remaining opponents. Of the original dozen troops, Kristoff and Sven had KOed three, and Elsa herself had managed to wound two others badly enough to make them withdraw from the fight. What the Queen lacked in strength and skill, she made up for with ferocity and the impenetrability of her ice-armor, which her powers could repair almost instantly whenever a Dianisian sword damaged it.

"Forget your swords!" Otos shouted from his position well away from the battle. "You'll never get through her armor! Just wrestle her to the ground!"

As two men continued to skirmish with Kristoff and Sven, the remaining five backed away, regrouped, and began to fan out.

 _Uh-oh_ , Elsa thought.

Suddenly, the thick wooden shutter of a shop window flew open behind the Dianisians, cracking one of them in his helmeted head and knocking him to the ground. When the others turned to look, an empty wine bottle flew from the window and struck another soldier in the face, stunning him.

Elsa glanced at the sign that hung above the shop door: _Helga's Fine Dresses_.

"Thanks, Helga!" Elsa called.

A voice from inside the shop shouted some angry gibberish, and then the heavy shutter slammed closed.

***

"They work quickly, I'll give them that," Anna said, looking down toward the castle gates.

A small horde of Dianisian troops had hustled a battering ram through the streets and were now positioning it in front of the gates. Many infantrymen with large shields stood around the ram, protecting its crew from the arrows being fired down at them from the battlements by Arendellan guards.

"Their priority is to take the castle," her Army liaison said, "before any of our reinforcements arrive. Which, I'm afraid, they are likely to do—even our fastest mounted units probably won't reach the capitol for another half hour at least. Ma'am…you should move to a safer location."

Anna was prepared for that. On her way up to the tower, she had stopped by her bedchamber and taken a hidden key from behind the drawer in her nightstand. The key opened two doors that few people besides herself and Elsa knew about. The first led to the secret exit tunnel in the cellar, which Anna was not inclined to use; the exit tunnel ended in the basement of the now-incinerated Armory and might well be impassable. The second door was close to her and Elsa's bedchambers and looked like any other door on that floor of the castle, but the wood was only a veneer over two inches of the hardest steel Arendelle's ironworks could make. The room contained a couple of cots and two weeks' worth of food and water.

But even with the Dianisians battering the gate and the safe chamber awaiting her, Anna couldn't make herself leave the tower just yet. She needed to keep the wheels in her head turning, to see if there wasn't one more thing she could think of that would help keep the invaders at bay until the reinforcements began to arrive.

Or, she thought, she could hope very hard for a miracle.

***

Tilde and the Duke were on the inland side of town, overseeing the distribution of the weapons and armor confiscated from the caravel at Tan Sands, when they saw a large crowd coming down the street. Tilde's trained eyes saw immediately that they were not Dianisian troops, but civilians. Farmers, in fact; if their peasant clothing hadn't made that clear, the tools they carried—sickles, pitchforks, and the like—would have. Tilde guessed that there were perhaps three hundred men in the crowd, and about half that number of women.

"Who's in charge here?" asked their leader, a sandy-haired fellow who looked big enough to plow a field without any help from an ox.

"For the moment, I am," the Duke replied. "What brings you here, gentlemen…and ladies? Please be brief; I'm a bit busy with an invasion at the moment."

"We're from Big Elk village, and we came to hunt down the bastard that poisoned our Queen," the leader said, drawing grunts and murmurs of angry approval from the crowd behind him. "But if there's a whole army of bastards, well, that's even better."

Tilde pointed down toward the harbor, where the fight was raging, and said, "Be warned—many of the invaders are trained, professional soldiers. They will not be easily defeated."

A dark-haired man, who was even larger than the leader, held up a scythe and answered, "Well, I'm a trained, professional farmer, and I spend a month every year cuttin' the heads off things. So I say bring 'em on!"

"And you?" Tilde said, turning to an elderly looking woman who seemed to need her spear—clearly her usual walking staff, with a kitchen knife lashed to one end—just to hold herself up. "You should go back. You can't hope to survive this."

"I've survived long enough!" the old woman spat. "I'm more than glad to trade my arthritis and my clouded eyes for a chance to take one of those Dianisian rats with me when I leave this world."

Tilde frowned grimly. Under most circumstances, she'd have told these people to go home. But this was a desperate situation.

"Fine," Tilde said, addressing the whole group. "Go see Sergeant Gustafson over there. Tell him I sent you; he'll give you all an assignment."

As the crowd of volunteers headed away, Hildy approached Tilde.

"Can you actually do that? You're not in the Army; you're just the Duke's assistant at the Armory."

"Sergeant Gustafson knows me," Tilde replied.

"Hmm...like, in the biblical sense, or-"

"Did you come over here for a reason?"

"Yes. I need you for something."

"What could you need me for at a time like this?"

"I'll answer your question with a question: Do you want that new sword of yours to just dangle from your hip while you hand out crossbows, or do you want to actually use it?"

Curious, Tilde said, "Keep talking."

***

Ajay was sweating and achy, but his concern for Rajiv drove him on. With a great deal of effort, the sea captain—still bound and locked in a broom closet with his Prince—had managed to squirm and roll such that his hands, tied behind his back, could reach the hilt of the prince's sword and pull it slightly out of its scabbard, exposing a couple of inches of sharp blade. Now Ajay had begun the laborious process of moving the ropes that bound his wrists against the steely edge, cutting them strand by strand.

Suddenly, the door opened, then shut rapidly again.

" _Quelle chance_!" a voice said in a triumphant whisper. "I have found you!"

Ajay heard a metallic _snick_ , then felt someone cut off his gag and pull it away. Ajay took a deep, gasping breath.

"You are Captain Anand, yes?" the Gallic-accented man said as he began working on Ajay's ropes with his small pocketknife, which the sailor noticed also included a corkscrew and bottle opener. "I am Jean-Pierre, sommelier to the royal family. I was assisting the housekeepers in searching for you and the Prince."

"I am most grateful for your help, Jean-Pierre," Ajay replied.

"I am afraid my assistance may have come too late," the chubby, somewhat balding man replied. "If the Dianisian invaders are not already inside the castle, they will be very shortly."

"Then I must get the Prince to safety," Ajay replied. "Where can we go?"

"There is a secret exit from the castle," Jean-Pierre replied. "No one outside the royal family is meant to know about it, but because of the nature of my responsibilities here...well, _in vino veritas_ , as they say."

***

Elsa was down to just two opponents now, taking swipes at them with her sword and dodging their grabbing hands as they tried to grapple her. Fortunately, armor made of ice wasn't easily grasped. And it helped that Kristoff and Sven had pushed the other three remaining Dianisians back, keeping them engaged with club and horns. Lord Otos was nowhere to be seen.

Hearing a cry of pain, Elsa looked over and saw that Kristoff and Sven were now surrounded by their three opponents, and the ice-man's upper arm was bleeding profusely from where an enemy's sword had just cut him.

"Kristoff!" Elsa shouted.

Without a thought, she dropped her sword and flung her arm out at the soldiers attacking her friend. An ice-boulder the size of Kristoff's torso flew from her hand and smashed into two of them, knocking them down and out.

Suddenly drained, Elsa staggered back, her head swimming. Her two opponents lunged forward and grabbed her, tacking her to the ground.

And then one of her attackers was flying away as Sven hooked the soldier with his horns and threw him off. The other enemy crumpled when Kristoff clubbed him in the back of the neck, below his helmet. The last soldier ran up to attack Sven from behind but was unpleasantly surprised when the reindeer kicked both feet backward like a mule and sent the Dianisian flying back into the dress-shop wall.

"I think," Kristoff panted raggedly as he tore a piece of cloth from his jacket to bind up his arm, "that we really need to get you out of here, Highness."

"You're probably right," Elsa said weakly. "We should get back to the castle and find Rajiv. He may be our best hope now."

Kristoff heard sounds from behind him, in the direction of the waterfront. He turned and saw, through the increasingly thick smoke enveloping that area, another squad of Dianisian troops headed his and Elsa's way.

"Sven, help me get Elsa onto your back!" Kristoff shouted.

The reindeer squatted down as Kristoff helped Elsa onto him. The troops were starting to get close.

"Sven," Kristoff said desperately, gripping his club as he gazed intently at the approaching troops, "get Elsa back to the castle. I'll stay here and-"

"Bjorgman!"

Kristoff turned around and saw Henrik and Grimmjaw, uphill from them and in the middle of the street, standing on what appeared to be a fully loaded ice wagon with its tailgate off. Both men were at the forward end of the wagon, poised to push the load of ice out of the back of it.

"Move aside!" Henrik shouted.

Kristoff, Elsa, and Sven darted into an alley. Kristoff could hear the two ice-men grunting loudly with effort; then he watched in near-wonderment as what looked like two tons of block ice came sliding down the stone-paved road and straight into the advancing Dianisian troopers, knocking them down like bowling pins.

"Huh," Kristoff said. "Wasn't expecting help from those guys."

"People can surprise you," Elsa replied. "Now let's go, before those soldiers regain their senses."

***

Anna was watching the Dianisians bash away at the main gate with their battering ram when a page, his blonde hair wild and his face red, sprinted out onto the castle parapets.

"They've breached the service gate!" the page practically screamed. "The enemy is inside the castle!"

Anna cursed inwardly. The attack on the main gate was a distraction. The service gate wasn't visible from the tower, and none of the intelligence that Anna had received from the pages or her military liaisons had suggested a heavy assault on that gate. The Dianisians must have made some kind of blitz attack on it; it looked like they could hustle those battering rams through the streets pretty quickly.

"Highness," said one of Anna's guards. "We need to get you to safety right n-"

Suddenly, several men emerged at a run onto the roof. From their uniforms and their tight formation, Anna could tell that these weren't conscripts or new volunteers—these were pros, maybe even elite troops.

"Highness, go!" her guards shouted. Anna's Army and Navy liaisons drew their swords and, standing side by side with the guards, formed a wall between the onrushing attackers and the Princess.

Anna ran for the door on the opposite tower, hoping that there was no second squad of enemy soldiers on its way up the stairs to which it led. She threw open the door, saw no one beyond it, and glanced back at the fight now being waged in the spot where she had stood only moments before.

A flash of motion and a spray of blood caught Anna's eye, and then Anna saw the blonde head of her Army liaison roll to a stop on the stones of the rooftop, the woman's blue eyes staring sightlessly at the gray sky.

Anna ran.

***

Prince Hjalmar looked around. He had fallen behind the other princes, all of whom were more lightly armored and more fleet of foot than he. He had never been especially fast, and somehow he felt even slower today, as if some invisible weight were dragging at him.

He looked around, seeking some way to join the fight, some Arendellan platoon he could assist. The memory of Queen Elsa's kindness during their meeting the day before was foremost in his mind, and he wanted to return it, even if it would be his last act on Earth.

As he lumbered down the cobblestone street, headed toward the waterfront, he spied movement to his right as a voice loudly whispered, "Hey! You!"

He turned and saw an armored blonde woman crouching behind some barrels near a storefront, waving him over.

"There's a Dianisian squad headed this way," the woman hissed. "Help me ambush them."

"How do you know _I'm_ not Dianisian?" Hjalmar asked.

"How many blonde-bearded Dianisians of your size have you ever seen?"

"Fair point," the prince replied, dropping into a crouch next to the woman. "I'm Hjalmar."

"Tilde," the woman replied. "Now be ready. They'll get here any moment."

"Not that I doubt your skill," Hjalmar said, "but I'm not sure the two of us are a match for a dozen Dianisians, even if we take them by surprise."

"They're going to be _very_ surprised," Tilde said. "Just stay hidden until they are just past us. And don't get distracted."

Sure enough, moments later, the squad of leather-armored Dianisians approached, armed with long spears and short swords. Hjalmar hid his big body behind the barrels as best he could.

"Oh, boys?" a female voice said from somewhere ahead of the Dianisians.

Hjalmar peeked through a gap between the barrels and saw a woman—the exceptionally buxom one who had briefly participated in the pub crawl the night before. Hildy, that was her name. She was wearing a low-cut blue dress, around whose neckline her fingers were curled.

As Hjalmar watched, Hildy pulled down the neck of her dress to expose her huge, perfectly formed bosom.

The Dianisians stopped in their tracks and gawked. Hjalmar, remembering Tilde's warning about not getting distracted, averted his eyes; besides, having been with a frost giant, he'd seen bigger.

"You know what they say," Hildy continued. "'Make love, not war.'"

One of the enemy soldiers, still gawking, blurted, "N- Nobody says that."

Hildy smiled as she replied, "It'll catch on."

Hjalmar looked at Tilde. Tilde looked back. Then they attacked.

***

Having descended to the floor where her and Elsa's bedchambers were located, Anna slipped out of the stairwell and peered around a corner, inspecting the corridor. She was trying to keep her mind on what she was doing, and not to dwell on the horrible sight she had just witnessed. Or on the guilt she felt that her military liaisons had died for her without her even having learned their names.

Spying no enemy troops, she headed for the door to the safe chamber, which was only thirty feet or so down the hallway.

She was perhaps three steps from the door when a man in the leather armor of a Dianisian infantryman suddenly leaped out from a nearby archway. Anna reflexively dodged away from his grabbing arms—and straight into those of a second enemy soldier.

"Gotcha!" the second man shouted, wrenching one of Anna's arms up behind her back and taking firm hold of her other wrist.

"Now, Princess," he said, "just behave yourself 'til we get downstairs. You don't want to have to sign the surrender papers left-handed."

Struggling uselessly, Anna snarled, "You can break _both_ my arms and all of my _teeth_ before I'll-!"

"Well done!" a voice interrupted.

Anna turned her head to see a familiar figure in an outdated red velvet jacket step out of the shadows.

"Well done, Corporal," the man repeated, looking at the soldier holding Anna, then to the other man, "and Private. You bring honor to Hydra Company this day."

"Herringholtz," Anna said slowly, even as the wheels in her head spun. "I should have guessed you were working for the Dianisians."

"Indeed," the man said as he drew a dagger from his jacket.

"Hey!" the Dianisian corporal interjected as he pulled Anna back a step. "We need her alive."

"It's not for her," the Baron replied, his tone suggesting that he had meant to end the sentence with "you cretin" but had merely forgotten. Using the dagger, he cut the cord from the drapes of a nearby window.

"You'll want to bind her hands," Herringholtz said. "The Princess is both feisty and clever. All too often, she is one step-" he locked eyes with Anna "-ahead."

He tossed the cord to the private with his left hand. Then, in a flash, he raised his right arm and hurled the dagger straight through the private's throat. The gagging man fell to the floor.

Anna leaned forward and then whipped her head back, smashing it into the startled corporal's face. Seeing Herringholtz draw a second dagger, she wrested her arms out of the Dianisian soldier's grip and twisted out of the way as the Baron threw his blade and struck the man squarely in the middle of his chest protector, which the razor-sharp blade pierced as easily as if the leather were slow-cooked pork. The soldier fell.

"Thank you," Anna said. She picked up one of the fallen Dianisians' swords while Herringholtz speedily retrieved his throwing daggers and wiped them off with a handkerchief.

As princess and baron ducked into the archway from which the private had ambushed Anna, she asked, "But how did you happen to be here?"

"I was looking for Prince Rajiv when I spotted those two in the corridor. They were arranging themselves to lie in wait near that door, and I thought there was probably a reason for it, so I decided to lie in wait myself."

"Otos must have found the safe chamber and told the troops where it was," Anna said. "And how did you -?"

"Dianisian rank and unit insignia," Herringholtz interrupted, seemingly in the interest of time, "have remained unchanged for three centuries. As for the dagger-throwing, it is a hobby I have embraced as a way of dealing with life's pressures. My family never considered it an appropriately gentlemanly pursuit, however, so I would go into the forest to practice unobserved—a habit I retain to this day. Now, this being your castle, how do you suggest we proceed?"

"The safe chamber is no good now that the enemy knows about it," Anna replied. "The room is walled with steel, but the Dianisians could turn it into an oven with their Greek fire. Our best bet now is to try to get out through the secret tunnel in the cellar. Or, at least, we can probably hide down there for a while, and hope that the reinforcements can take back the castle when they get here."

As they slipped away down the stairs, Anna couldn't help think that hope might be all she had left.

END CHAPTER 17 


	18. Chapter 18: The Traitors

Chapter 18: The Traitors

"Here we are," said Jean-Pierre, quietly closing and locking the wine-cellar door behind himself and Ajay. "I am glad to see that the Dianisians have not yet found this place. The thought of those soldiers guzzling down the fine collection of wines I have assembled here over the decades fills me with nausea."

The sommelier took a lantern from a hook on the wall and lit it, illuminating Ajay's path as the big Sundaran made his way down the stone steps, carrying Prince Rajiv in his arms.

They reached the bottom of the steps and entered a large, stone-floored room filled with casks, cabinets, and rack upon rack of bottles.

"Ah," Jean-Pierre said, looking fondly over the many shelves of wine like a lord over his lands. "So many wonderful varietals, so many good years. And as their Highnesses age and their tastes develop, there will be many more good years ahead."

Despite the circumstances, Ajay smiled. He had always found a certain joy in meeting anyone so passionate about their work.

"Now," the sommelier continued, "let me see…"

The man walked down a row of shelves along the wall, briefly scrutinizing each section before moving to the next. Then he stopped.

"Ah ha, this is it," Jean-Pierre said. "This is meant to be opened with a key, but…"

The man took out his pocketknife and flipped open the bottle opener. He stuck this into a small hole in the wall between shelves and fiddled with it for several seconds. Then there was a click, and a narrow section of the shelves swung open with the door that they concealed.

"Fascinating," Ajay said. "Is lock-picking a typical skill for a sommelier?" he asked wryly.

"I'm afraid," Jean-Pierre replied, "there is a reason why I am no longer welcome in my homeland. There were some who found my thinking a bit too…revolutionary."

"I see," Ajay replied. Then, looking down the dark tunnel to which the secret door led, he said, "Now, let's be on our way."

"I shall remain here," the sommelier answered. "If the Dianisians find this place…Well, they will have my blood before they will have the '38 Menzelle, or the '51 Chateau d'Ehstiffe!"

"But how will you defend yourself?" Ajay asked. "That tiny knife will do little good against a Dianisian sword."

"Do not fear," Jean-Pierre replied.

He took a bottle off a nearby shelf, pried off its lid, and stuffed one end of his handkerchief into the bottleneck.

"Arendellan domestic vodka is weak in flavor, but great in flammability," he said. Then, holding up the bottle and lantern so that he could easily ignite the one with the other if the need arose, he added, " _Bon chance, mon ami_."

"To you as well, my friend," Ajay replied.

The Sundaran sailor entered the tunnel, and the door shut behind him. Yet somehow, already, Ajay could see light at the other end.

***

"Huh," Kristoff said, turning to the Queen. "You made it sound like finding Rajiv was going to be hard."

They were standing in the secret tunnel, Elsa on Sven's back, leaning forward against the reindeer's neck because of the low ceiling. Kristoff was holding up a makeshift torch to light their way, and now it illuminated the approaching figure of Ajay, still carrying the Sundaran prince.

"Rajiv!" Elsa half-shouted. She rolled rapidly off Sven's back and ran to where Ajay stood.

"Good to see you, Ajay," Kristoff said, walking up behind Elsa.

"You as well, my friend," the bearded man answered.

They all froze as another light appeared somewhere behind where Ajay stood. Soon, it became apparent that the source was a red-jacketed man carrying a lantern, with a young woman just behind him.

"For a secret passage," Herringholtz said to Anna, "the volume of traffic in here is surprisingly high."

"Elsa! Kristoff!" Anna squeaked, serially running into their arms.

Elsa looked again at the unconscious Rajiv, then up at Ajay.

"What happened?" she whispered fiercely.

"We were taken by surprise and knocked unconscious," the Sundaran captain replied. "The Prince is alive, but I have been unable to rouse him."

Elsa looked at the prince, deep in worried thought. Then she spoke.

"Lay him on the ground and move back. I'm going to try something."

Ajay did as the Queen asked, and the others joined him in taking several steps back.

Elsa knelt by the unconscious Rajiv and placed a hand on his chest.

"Please let this work," she whispered.

Slowly, a web of frost formed around Elsa's palm and began to spread outward across the prince's chest.

"Come on," Elsa murmured. "Come on…"

The ice thickened even as it continued to expand over Rajiv. The man's lips turned blue, and his face paled.

"Please," Elsa whispered. "Please don't let this be the last time I touch y-"

" _Aaaaaahhh!_ " Rajiv screamed as his eyes flew open and his head jerked up, globes of fire bursting into life around his clenched fists.

Elsa leaped back, instinctively forming a protective zone of cold around her body. Rajiv stared at her, suddenly wide awake.

"Elsa!" he cried. "What did you-"

"Shhhh!" the Queen hissed anxiously, hurrying to Rajiv's side. "You were knocked out; I had to use my powers to bring you back."

"How?"

"Opposite elements. I thought if I chilled your body enough, your own powers would kick in to protect you—and wake you up to defend yourself."

"You are extremely clever," Rajiv panted.

"It was a long shot," Elsa replied. "How do you feel?"

"Alert," Rajiv said. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. I need your help. The port and everyone in it is going to be a pile of ashes soon if we don't do something."

"I will do everything I-"

"Highness," Ajay interrupted, addressing Elsa. "Forgive me, but may I speak with the Prince for a moment?"

"Of course," Elsa replied, leaning against the wall.

Anna and Kristoff went to the weakened Elsa's sides as Ajay pulled Rajiv aside and spoke quietly to him.

"My Prince," the Sundaran captain said with a pained expression, "it is my duty to remind you that your father would not want you to become involved in another kingdom's war."

Rajiv nodded thoughtfully.

"My friend," the Prince replied, "I have always admired your devotion to your duty to protect the interests of our King. And never would I fault you for it."

"Thank you, your Highness," Ajay replied, clearly uncertain as to where the prince was going with this.

"So please do not take it personally when I tell you that were my father here now to say such a thing to me in person, I would suggest to him that he go and fuck himself."

Ajay's eyed went a bit wide.

"Queen Elsa," Rajiv continued, "has been very kind to me. And I cannot deny that I have developed feelings for her. But even if neither of those things were true, this invasion is a great injustice, and I cannot simply stand by when there is something I can do to stop it."

Ajay's look of shock quickly gave way to a grin as he said, "I am most relieved to hear it, my Prince."

***

They soon reached the other end of the escape tunnel. Elsa and Kristoff had informed the others that the Armory was largely a burnt-out husk, but the stone walls and basement stairs were still more or less intact. So after Kristoff and Sven moved a couple of fallen, half-incinerated beams, they had been able to enter the tunnel without much difficulty.

"But how did you get into the building without being seen?" Herringholtz asked as they ascended the stairs toward the Armory entrance.

"Some friendly faces showed up and created a distraction," Kristoff replied, turning around to help the others up the last few steps, which were slippery with ash. "But I don't know if they're still-"

"Ha ha!" a voice shouted from behind Kristoff.

The startled ice-man, club in hand, whipped around and struck before he could even think to look at who had spoken. His club cracked against the skull of Prince Javier—in fact, the wooden shaft broken in half, releasing something green and sparkly that wafted into the air around Javier's head before vanishing. The prince fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Whoops," Kristoff said.

Prince Sefu, Mofa, Prince Gormal, Hamish, Prince Varek, Popov, and Dr. Montalvo all approached. Montalvo knelt down to tend to Prince Javier.

"'tis perhaps for the best," Gormal said, looking down at the unconscious Hermosan prince. "The madman was lucky to get himself just knocked out and not killed."

Looking down at Javier and then up at the group, Elsa said, "We need to get to the port. Can you help us?"

"Most certainly," replied Prince Sefu.

Elsa saw that Sefu's stilts had been partly burnt off, so that the man was standing on the ground with just a couple of char-ended sticks strapped to his calves. But the Mianyokan prince seemed too absorbed by the battle to care; in fact, he pointed at a group of Dianisian infantry that had spotted them and was now charging toward them.

"Watch out!" Sefu shouted.

Rajiv, who was near the front of the group, moved forward and swept his arm out in front of his body, sending a wave of fire out in a wide arc toward the running soldiers. Now about thirty feet away, the Dianisians stopped abruptly and variously covered their faces or fell to the ground to protect themselves. Then, at the order of their leader, they retreated.

"There's more coming from behind!" Kristoff shouted, pointing at another dozen or so Dianisian soldiers headed in their direction.

Rajiv turned again, but Prince Gormal put up his hand.

"You take the front, boyo," he said even as he drew an arrow from his quiver, with no more haste than if he were taking a sip of tea. "We've got your back."

Gormal nocked the arrow, pulled, and fired. The projectile went straight through the lead enemy soldier's right eye, killing him instantly. And just before the rest of the infantry reached them, Herringholtz threw a dagger into the shoulder of one, making him drop his sword and taking him out of the fight.

Kristoff, Sven, and the remaining princes and attendants took on the rest of the soldiers hand-to-hand. Sefu was able to fight three at once, using his big shield and footwork to keep two off of him while he dispatched another with his spear.

Soon, enough of the attacking soldiers were downed that the rest chose to flee. Elsa and her motley group of defenders began moving at a jogging pace toward the port, Elsa still on Sven's back.

"Despite our successes so far," Herringholtz huffed as he ran, "are we certain that it is wise for such a small number to face the largest and most well-equipped invasion force the Dianisians have ever mustered?"

"We have to try," Elsa said.

"Mmm," Herringholtz said, his brow furrowing. "This is perhaps not immediately relevant, but it is counterintuitive that the Dianisians were able to double the size of their fleet and amass such an enormous army when they are in the midst of an economic crisis."

Anna, running alongside Elsa and Sven, gasped in a way that had nothing to do with exertion.

"The Dianisians are full of surprises," Elsa replied. "They've been a step ahead of us since the beginning. I'm still wondering how many more spies they've had in Arendelle in addition to Otos."

"Not spies," Anna said, staring straight ahead. "Traitors."

"What?" Elsa asked, looking at Anna with puzzlement.

Anna stopped dead.

"I need to go," she said.

"Wait, whoa," Kristoff said, stopping beside her. "You can't go anywhere by yourself right now."

"I know. Come with me."

***

The rest of the group—sans Anna and Kristoff (but still including Sven, whom Kristoff had told to keep carrying Elsa)—soon reached the port. Every building in sight was burning, and everyone in the group had to cover their nose and mouth with a cloth just to keep breathing. Sven couldn't do this for himself, so Ajay tore the left sleeve from his jacket and wrapped it around the reindeer's muzzle.

"I have never seen so much fire in one place," Rajiv said, wide-eyed.

"Can you put it out?" Elsa asked.

Rajiv reached his hand out toward a burning building nearby and concentrated, willing the fire to go out. The flames flickered momentarily, then continued to burn as fiercely as before.

"It seems I cannot simply extinguish fire that I did not create myself. But I can move it."

He reached out with his powers and mentally grabbed hold of the flames that raged on the nearest wall. Then, sweeping his arm up and over his head, he sent the flames leaping through the air in an arc like a thin, fiery rainbow. The flames came down and struck the surface of the waters of the harbor, hissing steamily as they were suddenly extinguished.

Rajiv did this twice more, then took a moment to examine the building. Most of it was still on fire.

"This isn't working," the Prince said. "In the time it will take me to save this building, the rest of the port will burn to cinders."

Elsa thought for a moment, then said, "Part of learning to control my powers involved understanding the nature of ice—the way it behaves, the shapes it naturally wants to make. So what is the nature of fire? What does fire want to do?"

Looking down in concentration, Rajiv said slowly, "Fire is...energy. It wants to consume fuel, and, and air. It wants to grow, and spread, and rise. It wants-"

He stopped and looked at her.

"I have an idea," he said. "Get everyone back."

As Elsa waved the others away from Rajiv, the Sundaran prince reached toward the building and pulled another stream of flame from its side. But this time, instead of hurling it into the harbor, he set it circling around his body. The fire's tendency to move helped Rajiv to keep it in this orbit with only minimal concentration on his part.

Rajiv grabbed a second stream of flame, and then a third, sending them circling around himself. Because he didn't have to take the time to throw them into the water, he could pull the flames off the buildings faster now.

But not fast enough. Not yet.

***

"I had a feeling I'd find you here," Anna said, standing in the doorway of the Minister of the Treasury's office.

The woman removed her reading glasses and calmly looked up from the volume in front of her: a ledger that listed all of the Crown's assets.

"Most people," the Princess continued, "probably assume that the Treasury is a dangerous place to be right now—that the Dianisians will loot it the first chance they get." With a sharp look at the Minister, Anna added, "Unless you happen to know that they're under orders not to."

The Minister's smile was both sinister and condescending as she said, "Honestly, I'm a little bit impressed that you found me out. Far too late, of course, but still..."

Anna heard someone running up the stairs behind her. She turned her head and saw that it was Bulmar, the goateed accountant who had shown her the vault the night before.

"Minister!" the man cried as he arrived at the top of the stairs. Then, spotting Anna, he shouted, "Your Highness! You both need to leave immediately; the invaders could get here any minute!" He turned to the Minister. "And where are the extra guards we're supposed to have? It doesn't look like even the regular-"

Bulmar suddenly went silent as the point of a blade, smeared with his heart's blood, suddenly emerged from his chest. Anna watched, horrified, as the life faded from the man's eyes.

"Been waiting to do that for a year," said Holgar, the other accountant, his face appearing over his dead colleague's shoulder like a macabre second head as he withdrew the dagger from the man's back.

***

Rajiv walked slowly up the street, pulling more and more strands of fire into the column of flame that now swirled around him like a dust devil as it grew.

"What is he trying to do?" Herringholtz asked.

"I'm not sure," Elsa replied.

Then she noticed something: As Rajiv approached the wall of a burning building, the flames began to extend out toward him, even before he raised his hands to attract them. The fire swirling around Rajiv's body had become a vortex that was drawing more fire into itself. And the superheated air around the column was rising, causing more air to rush in and pull more fire along with it.

"Oh, you clever man," Elsa said under her breath.

***

Suddenly energized by fear and outrage, Anna slammed her entire body weight into Bulmar's still-upright corpse. The dead man toppled over backward and took his murderer with him. Holgar went crashing down the stairs and ended up crumpled on the landing between the first and second floors, lying motionless beneath his victim's body.

As the Minister stood up, Anna reached behind her and pulled out a sword she had taken from a fallen Dianisian soldier. She pointed the weapon at the Minister in warning.

"You're not going anywhere," Anna panted angrily.

"Oh?" the Minister replied, pulling a sword of her own from beneath her desk and advancing toward Anna.

"Seriously? You're going to fight me?" Anna said as the older woman approached. "You're three times my age, and you haven't exactly kept your fig-"

With a lunging step forward and little more than a flick of her wrist, the Minister sent Anna's sword flying from her hand.

"Okay," Anna breathed. "I've gotta admit, I didn't see that coming."

The older woman was just opening her mouth to reply when Anna took a long step-hop backward and bolted down the stairs.

***

Rajiv was moving faster through the port now. The rotating column of flame around him had grown to the size of a tornado—a literal firestorm that fed and grew by pulling in more and more flame from the surrounding buildings. Now, whole blocks of the port that had previously been on fire were merely smoking, no longer hot enough to burn.

Inside the rotating cone of fire, Rajiv was sweating. Not from the heat, to which he seemed to be immune, but from the increasing amount of effort necessary to keep the firestorm going. But he kept moving forward, stripping the flames from building after building, making the cone of fire grow taller and wider.

But what could he _do_ with it all? If he just released it, the result would be explosive—in which case he might as well have let the port burn.

Whatever he was going to do, he would need to do it soon. He couldn't keep this up much longer.

***

Anna turned around at the stairway landing, narrowly avoiding tripping over the tangled bodies of the two accountants. She dashed down the remaining stairs and took a hard left through the stairway entrance. Then, hearing the Minister's footsteps not far behind her, she sped toward the main door. As a security measure, the door had to be unlocked with a key from the inside as well as the outside, so Anna fished the borrowed key out of her dress and pulled the thin chain off of her neck as she ran.

And then, her fingers fumbling, she dropped it.

Being light-weight, Anna could stop on a dime. But she could do no more than glance at the dropped key before the point of the Minister's sword was hovering in front of Anna's face.

"No, no, Princess," the older woman said, as if to a misbehaving dog or cat. "I'm afraid I can't let you leave here just yet…or ever."

***

Every building in the port was free of fire now. Elsa could not even catch a glimpse of Rajiv through the enormous cone of flame that raged and spun around him.

Despite the rushing air and the roaring flames, Elsa could hear Rajiv's voice from inside the tornado of fire, making a sound that might have been exertion or pain.

"Aaaaaaggghhhhhh…."

"Rajiv!" Ajay shouted. "Are you all right?"

Elsa, still on Sven's back, put a hand on the big Sundaran's shoulder and squeezed. Ajay, in turn, put his big hand over hers.

"It will be all right," Elsa said, hoping she was telling the truth.

Rajiv's voice grew louder as he cried, "AaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiAAAAAAAAAH!"

Suddenly, the flames around Rajiv leaped upward, forming a huge ball of fire that raced away from Rajiv's extended hands and rocketed into the sky above the harbor. Then the fireball exploded with a deafening boom, and Elsa could feel her teeth and bones rattle as windows shattered and Dianisian soldiers cried out in terror.

Elsa turned and saw a unit of Dianisian crossbowmen about a block away, cringing at the sight and sound of the explosion. Everyone else in sight was doing the same.

"That," Elsa called to every enemy within earshot, "was a _warning_."

The crossbowmen dropped their weapons. Others, farther away, did the same. And then the air was filled with the clatter and clang of Dianisian weapons falling to the cobblestones.

END CHAPTER 18 


	19. Chapter 19: The Princess

Chapter 19: The Princess

Even as the Minister backed Anna against the door, the Princess asked, "W- Where did you learn to use a sword like that?"

"I suppose," the Minister replied, "you didn't know that I was one of the first women to join the Castle Guard. Still one of the only ones."

"No," Anna said, the wheels in her head spinning rapidly. "I didn't know that. I don't know why, though; a woman in the Guard would be kind of a big deal."

"Yes, well," the Minister said, a bit of huffiness seeping into her saccharine tone, "perhaps the subject would have gotten more attention if your grandfather, King Marius, hadn't become embroiled in a sex scandal the very day I enlisted."

Anna only dimly remembered her grandfather, but she did remember hearing his whispered nickname: "Marius of the Wandering Eye."

"Of course," the Minister continued, "joining the Guard was just a way in. Before long, I managed to get assigned to the quartermaster's office, where my talent with numbers could be noticed. And now, here I am."

"In the perfect position," Anna retorted, "to funnel Arendelle's tax money to the Dianisians by making secret withdrawals from those supposedly sealed coffers. What did you do, make holes in the bottom with a drill?"

"A jeweler's saw, actually. Makes a nice, neat opening that is easily resealed."

"Clever. And I'm guessing you were the one who set up all those fake companies to export the ingredients for Greek fire to the Dianisians."

"It's not hard to do, when you have friends in both high and low places. Honestly, you and your sister have no idea what goes on in the dark underbelly of your pretty little kingdom."

"And this prince-consort thing gave you the perfect opportunity to send a Dianisian spy after Elsa. Lucky."

"Luck had nothing to do with it, my dear," the Minister said, looking pleased with herself. "Who do you think first suggested inviting the princes here? 'Producing an heir' is so important for the Queen, after all."

"But why do _this_?" Anna asked, just barely tamping down her outrage. "You've got a great career, power, respect...Why throw all that away by handing Arendelle over to another kingdom?"

"Power? Respect?" the Minister replied with equal measures of anger and irony. "All of my talent, my experience, my expertise mean _nothing_ to you royals, no matter how evolved you think you've become. The Queen decides to send someone in her stead to the trade conference, but does she send a qualified negotiator, an expert in the kingdom's finances? No—she sends _her little sister_."

"She wants me to learn," Anna replied, defensive in spite of herself.

"I'm sure," the Minister said dismissively. "But I am quite finished being subject to the whims of lechers, fools, and children simply because they were born to the right parents."

"Aegeus is a king, you know. How will living under his rule be any better?"

"In exchange for my efforts, he's going to give me a title, and territory. I'll be Duchess of the central lands, with enough autonomy that-" the Minister brought the tip of her sword up to Anna's face "-I might as well be a queen."

"Wow," Anna said, her wide eyes focused on the sharp point before them. "You know, I never figured you for a traitor."

The Minister smiled, clearly pleased to have fooled Anna along with the rest of the kingdom.

"But I did know that you hated me," Anna went on. "The fact that you never call me 'Highness,' the way that you spit just a little whenever you say 'Princess'..."

"You're a symptom of the disease that plagues this land," the older woman replied.

"And yet you've talked my ear off every chance you've had. Because even your hatred of me and my family is nothing compared to your massive ego. Even now, when you really shouldn't be letting me stall you like this, you just can't shut up."

As the raw anger rose in the Minister's eyes, Anna continued, "And you know what's really going to grate your cheese? The fact that I'm about to have the last word. And that word is FISHBONE!"

Anna leaped to the side a split second before the door burst open behind her and four villagers armed with farming tools rushed in. As they surrounded the Minister, Kristoff came in behind them.

"You're going to want to drop that sword, Minister," Kristoff said. "These Big Elk Village Volunteers aren't very happy about what you helped Otos do to their Queen."

Fuming, the Minister dropped her weapon to the stone floor.

"You guys hear all that?" Anna said to the group.

"Every word," Kristoff said. "Between me and these folks, there's going to be plenty of ear-witness testimony when the Minister's on trial for treason."

As the four villagers tied the Minister's hands, Kristoff took Anna aside.

"Was that really your plan?" he hissed. "Let her disarm you and then question her while she's holding you at sword-point?"

"No, my plan was to get _her_ at sword-point, march her downstairs, and then start the conversation when we got to the door."

She took a deep, anxiety-releasing breath and added, "But sometimes, you've gotta improvise."

***

Tomas and Olaf had been sneaking around the castle, trying to make themselves useful. On the second floor, just above the service entrance, they had found a barrel of linseed oil in a supply closet. When the enemy soldiers began flooding through the service gate, the boy and the snowman poured the entire contents of the barrel onto the stone stairs between the first and second floor, rendering them all but impassable.

Now, though, Dianisian soldiers were dropping their weapons left and right, and it looked like the battle was over. The clatter brought Tomas to a nearby window, where he watched some castle guards start lining up the defeated soldiers while others collected the dropped weaponry.

A man who looked like some kind of officer shouted through the gate to one of the guards.

"Sergeant! Have you seen or heard anything of Lord Otos? There is still a general order in effect for his arrest."

"No, sir," the sergeant replied. "There's been no sign of him here. Word is he vanished before the battle was even over."

Tomas turned to Olaf.

"I know where he'll go," the boy said. "Are you good at being sneaky?"

"Of course!" the snowman cried. "Nothing's quieter than-!" He dropped his voice to a whisper. "Nothing's quieter than snow."

***

Hildy was glad the fighting was at an end. Tilde and Hjalmar, aided by Hildy's distraction, had defeated most of the Dianisian platoon when the last two enemy soldiers, infuriated, came after Hildy. She had drawn her dagger to defend herself, but thankfully, she hadn't needed to; Hjalmar ran up behind the two soldiers and was preparing to strike when he had one of his fainting spells and landed on them instead, pinning them beneath his unconscious body. The soldiers squirmed free only just as the horn blast of surrender was sounding, after which they promptly fled.

"Help me get him off the street," Hildy said to Tilde as she tried to figure out the best way to move the large, passed-out Nordlander.

They each grabbed a leg and managed to drag the helmeted prince partway down the block. They were only a couple of doors down from their townhouse when Tilde suddenly let go of Hjalmar's leg and straightened up, looking at something down the street.

"I have to go," Tilde said as she began to hurry away.

"Oh, that's fine," Hildy replied. "I can move three hundred pounds of Viking by myself, no problem."

When Tilde showed no sign of slowing, Hildy shouted after her, "That was sarcasm, you musclehead! Get back here and help me!"

But Tilde's pace had accelerated from a fast walk to a run, and then she turned a corner and was out of sight.

"Fine," Hildy grumbled. "Good thing I know a lot of guys with strong backs."

***

Lord Otos hustled down the dirt road toward Tan Sands. The place was of no note whatsoever; it was largely a low-end fishing village, full of the unwashed. But its low profile made it useful as a place for Otos to purchase a small sailboat and, for a small fee and under an assumed name, keep it ready at the village's only dock. It wouldn't do to merely keep it anchored and then have to wade or swim out to it when and if he needed it.

Being a great devotee of contingency planning, Otos had decided weeks ago that if the invasion failed, he would not return to Dianisia, where the blame for the failure would no doubt be placed squarely on his shoulders. Otos might have been King Aegeus' chief aide, but he was no longer the favorite, having been supplanted by a younger man who was even more silver-tongued than Otos.

He reached the shore end of the dock and began to walk down it toward his small getaway vessel. He was not entirely sure of his final destination yet, but there were many kingdoms where a man of his skills could find lucrative opportunities.

Suddenly, a small figure whizzed past him and then stopped, blocking his way.

"You're not going anyplace," said Tomas, brandishing the handsome dagger that he had worn as part of his princely disguise.

Otos chuckled.

"The real Prince Hypatios," he replied, "might have the skill to harm me with that dagger."

With snake-like quickness, Otos lunged diagonally forward, seized Tomas' wrist, and twisted it painfully, forcing the boy to drop his weapon.

"But not you, I'm afraid, goat-boy," Otos continued. "Whatever tricks you might have learned on the playground of your little dirt-village will not serve you here."

Otos expected the boy to struggle, or perhaps beg for mercy. Instead, he did something very odd.

He smiled.

Suddenly the boy pushed against Otos, throwing the entire weight of his small body against the much taller man. It was a pitiful gesture of defiance, strong enough only to force Otos back by a single step.

But he couldn't take that step. His leg tried to move back but was stopped by some sort of obstacle. And as Otos began to topple over backwards, he could see that the obstacle was the bizarre little carrot-nosed snowman, who had somehow managed to sneak up and drop to his hands and knees behind the Dianisian nobleman.

Otos tumbled off the dock into the chilly brown waters of the cove. A moment later he broke the surface, sputtering.

Suddenly, there was a sound like a single sung note as a sword was drawn. And just as suddenly, that sword's point came to a stop millimeters from Otos' throat.

"You burned down my father's armory," Tilde said, looking at Otos down the length of Ajay's Sundaran blade. "So you would be wise to stay in the water until the guards come to arrest you. Otherwise, I might be forced to kill you in self-defense."

Otos did not feel inclined to defy her.

***

Hjalmar's eyes opened, and the big Nordlander was a bit startled to find himself indoors. Not being the easiest person to move while unconscious, he was accustomed to awakening wherever he had fallen after having one of his fainting spells.

He sat up rapidly when he realized that he was no longer wearing his armor, his family signet ring, or his helmet. But he hadn't been robbed; the chainmail lay folded, with the helmet and ring on top of it, on a table adjacent to the sofa on which he was now sitting. This was clearly someone's parlor.

"I've heard," a woman's voice said from somewhere behind him, "that there's someone you miss very much."

Hjalmar turned and saw Hildy, the buxom woman who had exposed herself to the Dianisian troops, enabling Hjalmar and the blonde swordswoman to ambush them. Because of that, and given how much she seemed to know, Hjalmar saw no point in lying to her.

"There is," he answered.

Coming closer, Hildy asked, "And what would you give up to be with her?"

He couldn't keep the desperation out of his voice as he answered, "Anything." Then, almost in a whisper, he said, "Everything."

Hildy came closer. In her hand was an old, worn cloak.

"Then put this on," she said, tossing him the garment. "Your horse is tied up behind the house. If you ride straight north, you can reach the borderlands in less than a week, without having to cross into Nordland at all."

The meaning of her words came to him slowly. This woman was offering him a chance to be with Gnissa. But perhaps she didn't understand all the barriers that had prevented Hjalmar from accomplishing that himself.

"This..." he started, "...this won't work. If I simply disappear, my parents will never stop looking for me."

"The Queen," Hildy replied, "will inform your royal mother and father of your heroic death on the battlefield."

Hjalmar went silent for a moment. Then he said, "They will want my body sent back for burial."

"They'll get it. Burned beyond recognition, I'm afraid, but wearing your armor, your ring, and your helmet."

Hjalmar stood up slowly as the implications sank in. He would indeed be giving up everything—his family, his wealth, his whole life. Yet the thought filled him with indescribable joy.

He pulled on the cloak.

"Thank you," he said, his voice shaking. "How- How can I ever-"

"Make each other happy," Hildy said. "That's all the repayment I need."

She walked to the rear entranceway to the parlor and pointed toward the door at the back of the house.

"Now go," she said. "Keep your face hidden until you're outside of town."

Hjalmar couldn't have said anything else if he'd wanted to. He pulled the hood of the cloak over his head, and went out the door.

***

Elsa was now at the Navy Dock, where a group of senior military officers and advisers from her cabinet had assembled to handle the Dianisians' surrender. Rajiv and Ajay were there as witnesses, and Kristoff and Anna had also arrived and had told Elsa about the Treasury minister's betrayal and arrest. Finally, a page had appeared with two things to tell the Queen: the news of Lord Otos' capture, and an important piece of information from her Minister of Agriculture.

The Queen watched as Admiral Ostergard and several Arendellan Marines marched a short, swarthy man with a great many ribbons and insignia on his uniform to stand before her. The man eyed Elsa with a mix of fear and hostility.

"This," Ostergard said, "is Admiral Stavros, commander of the Dianisian invasion force. We have brought him here to offer the formal surrender."

"I am listening," Elsa replied.

"Do whatever you like to me, witch," the man said defiantly. "But-"

Suddenly, the point of Admiral Ostergard's sword was at the enemy admiral's throat.

"The proper form of address," the Arendellan officer said, "is 'your Highness.'"

"It's all right, Admiral," Elsa said. "Let him finish."

The admiral lowered his sword.

"-but spare my men," the Dianisian commander continued. "They were acting on _my_ orders."

"Your men will not be harmed," the Queen replied. "They will be permitted to return home aboard your regular Navy ships. But," Elsa added sharply, "you may tell King Aegeus that his Fire Fleet now belongs to Arendelle. We did pay for it, after all."

"Yes…your Highness," Stavros answered.

Elsa began to pace the dock in a manner both thoughtful and commanding.

"Over the next several years," she continued, "we will expect additional reparations to be paid to compensate for the destruction your invasion has caused."

The Dianisian admiral glowered at her, clearly wondering how his financially shipwrecked kingdom could possibly pay.

"To facilitate this process of repayment," Elsa added, "during the next few months, we will send fifteen hundred healthy young goats to Dianisia to reinvigorate your kingdom's economy."

Anna, looking on, watched the Admiral's expression transform from defiant anger to surprise bordering on shock. Then, as the information began to sink in, Anna could swear that tears were beginning to form in his eyes.

"That- That is most generous, your Highness."

Suddenly, panicked shouts were heard from the far end of the harbor. Everyone looked and saw that one of the Fire Fleet ships had burst into flames. Men on the deck were running around, trying futilely to control the fire.

"Captain Konstantin," Admiral Stavros growled, balling his fists; it was clear to Anna that Stavros had had problems with this particular officer in the past. "That insubordinate fool is scuttling his ship!"

The admiral looked desperately at Elsa as he said, "Please—if the fire reaches the storage tanks, everyone on that ship will die. And perhaps those on nearby ships, as well. If there is anything you can do to help them…"

Elsa looked to Rajiv. "Can you pull the fire away from the ship?"

The prince stretched out his hand toward the burning ship and concentrated. The flames flickered strangely, clearly influenced by Rajiv's powers, but they did not diminish. Rajiv tried harder, squinting, beads of sweat forming on his brow, but to no avail. He dropped his hand.

"I am sorry," he said. "The distance is too great. Perhaps with more practice I could do it...or perhaps not even then."

"Then I'll have to do it," Elsa said.

"Elsa, don't," Kristoff said, his tone somewhere between firm and pleading. "You've used your powers too much already. You could die!"

"I don't have to use much," Elsa insisted. "I just have to focus."

She looked at the burning ship. It seemed a thousand miles away.

"At least," she said, forcing the despair out of her voice, "I have to try."

"Let me help you," Rajiv said.

He stood behind her and put his arm around her. Then he put his lips next to her ear.

"Just focus on the ship," he said in a low voice. "Let your eyes rest there, and your mind, as well."

She couldn't help it—the moment she tried to concentrate on the ship, memories of Rajiv's foundering ship and her failure to save it flashed through her mind. And then thoughts of her parents, and then-

"I can't," she said. "There are too many other thoughts in my head. I can't block them out."

"Do not try," Rajiv said calmly. "Thoughts cannot be blocked out or pushed away, for this is not how the mind works. Instead, let the thoughts come. And then let them go."

Elsa focused on the ship, and she let the thoughts flow as they wanted—the harbor, the storm, the news the night her parents died, all of it running through her mind…and then out. And now, there was quiet.

Slowly, she stretched out her hand, and the cries of panic from the ship's crew became shouts of surprise as a sheet of ice began to spread over the deck, putting out the flames wherever it met them. The ice went all over the ship's surface—across the deck, down the sides of the hull, up the masts, even down into the hold. By the time the ship was coated in ice, the flames were extinguished, and the sailors were cheering with relief.

Elsa's body slackened, and Rajiv caught her. Others quickly gathered around and were relieved to see that the Queen was alive, if barely conscious.

"She'll be all right," Anna said. "She's tougher than she looks."

"You don't have to tell me," Kristoff said. "We should get her back to the castle." He whistled for Sven.

Elsa opened her eyes and looked at her sister.

"Anna," she said, smiling weakly. "When I was poisoned…you saved my life."

"What? No," Anna protested, her guilt from that moment in the parlor returning. "That was Kristoff, and Grand Pabbie, and Sven. I didn't even go with you. Don't you remember?"

"Here's what I remember," Elsa said. "I remember Grand Pabbie telling me that if I was to live, I needed to hold onto my life…by thinking of what I most wanted to live for."

Elsa put a hand on Anna's face as she said, "That was you, Anna. You're my family, and my best friend, and I love you."

Anna didn't speak. She just grabbed Elsa and held her tight until Sven arrived and it was time to go.

END CHAPTER 19 


	20. Chapter 20: The Ice-Man

Chapter 20: The Ice-Man

Three days had passed since the invasion. Elsa was fully recovered from the effects of the white-iris poison and, as of that morning, would be resuming her royal duties. Kristoff did not envy her the tasks that lay ahead, what with so much of the port having to be rebuilt.

The ice-man himself was getting ready to make a couple of deliveries before he headed for the castle. He was having to make the preparations on his own; Sven had wandered off right after breakfast. Kristoff was okay with that, though, given how moody his reindeer friend had been lately, but the ice-man was going to need Sven back soon if they were to get those deliveries done in time.

Kristoff opened his cottage door to look for him, and just at that moment, he saw Sven wandering into the yard.

"Hey, boy," the ice-man said, coming out into the yard. "Where've you been?"

Sven walked up to Kristoff, looking a little wobbly on his four legs. Then the reindeer gave his human friend a big lick right up the side of his face.

"Good to see you too, buddy," Kristoff said, grinning. Then his face turned serious. "Wait a minute, have you been eating fermented lingonberries again? You know, one of these days, you're gonna make yourself really si-"

Kristoff abruptly stopped speaking as, from around the corner of his house, a second reindeer appeared. Its hide was more brownish than Sven's, and the animal was a couple of inches shorter at the shoulder. Walking toward Kristoff and Sven, it seemed to have the same slightly wobbly gait and goofy demeanor that Sven had. And when it reached them, Sven and the new reindeer exchanged a nuzzle.

"Oh," Kristoff said, eyes a little wide. Then he nodded slowly as a smile came over his face. "Well, this is...nice. You wanna introduce me?"

Sven, looking at Kristoff, snorted as he touched an antler to one of the female reindeer's, whose array was nearly as impressive as Sven's.

"Well, hello, Kari," Kristoff said. "It's nice to meet you."

Then he leaned his head down next to Sven's and whispered, "I wouldn't say this to most guys, but your girlfriend has a nice rack."

Sven butted Kristoff playfully.

***

In one of the castle's larger private meeting rooms, Elsa looked around at the twenty or so people she had called together—Admiral Ostergard, General Stark, the Duke, the captain of the palace guard, the spymaster, and other high-ranking members of Arendelle's military, security, and intelligence services. Also there, standing a few feet behind Elsa, were two members of her new personal guard.

She cleared her throat, and everyone went silent.

"Arendelle," she began, "survived the Dianisian invasion."

Then, seeing a few smiles around the room, she added, "But it very nearly didn't."

The smiles faded.

"We had no intelligence to warn us of the attack," Elsa continued, "and our forces were entirely unprepared when that attack came. Had Prince Rajiv not intervened, it is quite possible that this kingdom would now be under Dianisian occupation."

Elsa took a moment to let that message sink in.

"Lord Otos," she went on, "was a scoundrel and a liar, but one thing he said to me was true: that Arendelle had become complacent, and weak. My powers may be great, but it is now abundantly clear that I am far from invincible. Especially against an enemy that is better prepared than we."

Now she could see shame on many of the faces in the room. Each of them had fallen down on the job, and they all knew it. But this meeting was not about distributing blame, because there was more than enough to go around—including a big portion for Elsa herself.

"The long and short of it is this," Elsa said. "I can't protect our kingdom alone. No one person can. It takes all of us, working together"—she panned her gaze over everyone in the room—"and doing our best."

They all nodded.

"Over the next few days," she concluded, "I will be meeting with each of you to discuss the specifics of strengthening Arendelle's intelligence network and defenses. For now, I have a ceremony to prepare for. You are dismissed."

There was a chorus of "Yes, your Highness!"

As they filed out, Elsa had to suppress a smile, because she had heard in their voices what she had hoped to hear: energy. They _wanted_ to do better—for themselves, their kingdom, and their Queen. And Elsa was hopeful that they would.

Then, flanked her guards, she headed for the castle's great hall.

***

"You're not nervous, are you?" Kristoff said as he watched Rajiv straighten his white kurta for the third time.

"No, of course not," the prince replied. "Are you?"

Adjusting the cuffs of his black jacket, Kristoff replied, "Not at all. I just…Okay, I've never stood up in front of this many people in my life."

"It will be fine," Rajiv assured him. "Just do what I always do."

"Please don't tell me to imagine everyone naked."

"Certainly not," Rajiv replied. "How would _that_ help? No, I just imagine them all with Ajay's beard."

"Even the women?"

"Especially the women."

Kristoff guffawed. "Okay, that might actually work."

They heard the trumpeting of horns from inside the great hall.

"Showtime," Kristoff said.

They entered the hall, where over a thousand guests were seated in two massive columns, and a thousand more thronged in the open area in the back, directed by palace guards to keep the center aisle open. Kristoff and Rajiv walked up the aisle, all the way to the front row, where two reserved seats awaited them.

Fighting his self-consciousness, Kristoff had deliberately avoided focusing his vision on any particular place, but once he was seated, he allowed himself to look up at the slightly raised dais at the front of the room. Elsa stood there, resplendent in an ice-blue dress that Kristoff knew she must have made with her powers. She also wore a new accessory—a silver-handled sword.

Elsa raised her hands, and the crowd quieted.

"As Queen," she said, projecting her voice to the entire room, "it is my privilege to confer special honor upon those who serve the kingdom of Arendelle with exceptional courage and distinction. Today, I am proud to exercise that privilege to recognize two people without whom our beloved kingdom might well have been lost.

"Prince Rajiv of Sundara, please come forward."

Rajiv stood and walked up the few stone steps to stand beside Elsa on the dais. On her other side stood her servant Kai, holding a small velvet pillow with something round and silvery on it, attached to a long ribbon.

"It would be no exaggeration," Elsa said, "to say that Prince Rajiv is among the chief reasons why we of Arendelle still have our lives and our freedom. Not just because of his powers, but because of his quick thinking and, most especially, his bravery. His exceptional service to our kingdom will never be forgotten.

"Prince Rajiv," Elsa continued, turning toward him, "it is my honor to bestow upon you the highest award that a monarch of Arendelle can give to a non-subject: the Northern Lights medal."

Elsa took the medal from the pillow, and Rajiv inclined his head. Applause arose from the crowd as their Queen hung the medal around the prince's neck.

Rajiv and the Queen looked out toward the crowd, taking in the applause for several seconds. Then they bowed to each other, and Rajiv returned to his seat. Elsa remained silent until the applause ceased.

"Kristoff Bjorgman," she called. "Please come forward."

Swallowing, Kristoff stood and went up to the dais to stand beside Elsa.

"As many of you know," Elsa said, "on the day of the invasion, I was poisoned. And I very nearly died."

There were a few whispers among people in the crowd, but most of the onlookers just nodded. The news had indeed spread far and wide.

"But this man," she continued, "together with his courageous reindeer, put his life at great risk for nothing more than a _chance_ to save mine. And then, although he is not a soldier or a guard, although he was unarmored and armed with nothing more than a club, he fought valiantly by my side to save our kingdom, as well.

"Such courage should be rewarded. And the one who possesses it should be recognized—not only for what he has done for his kingdom, but for what he could do for it in the future.

"Therefore, Kristoff Bjorgman, I ask you to kneel."

Kristoff knelt, inciting murmurs among the crowd. Then Elsa drew her sword—a slender, one-handed weapon whose blade shone in the sunlight that streamed through the windows of the great hall—and the crowd fell silent.

"In the name of God," Elsa said as she touched the tip of the blade to Kristoff's head—"of the Crown"—she touched his left shoulder—"and of the people of Arendelle"—she touched his right shoulder—"I dub thee… _Sir Kristoff_!"

The crowd went berserk with cheers. It had been a generation since anyone had been knighted in Arendelle, let alone anyone so clearly deserving of the honor as the young ice-man.

***

Prince Javier and Dr. Montalvo exited the ceremony together. Javier had been ready to return home to Hermosa, but because of his head injury, Dr. Montalvo had convinced him to stay in Arendelle for a few more days until he was sure that the prince was well enough to travel.

"So you really no longer believe that you have the plague?" the doctor asked Javier as they walked.

"No," the prince replied. "I have no cough or fever, and I have not visited an area where I would be likely to contract the illness."

"And no malaria?"

"No. I have never had the periodic bouts of fever that characterize the disease."

"Remarkable," Dr. Montalvo said.

"Indeed," Prince Javier replied. "It is as though the blow to the head somehow knocked some sense into it. Although I realize that that is not a particularly plausible explanation for the change in my thinking."

"Then let's not look a gift horse in the mouth," Montalvo said. "You know, this opens up a great many options for you with regard to your future."

"Indeed," the prince responded. "I have been thinking about that. Do you think…I would make a good doctor?"

Smiling, Montalvo answered, "My Prince, I think any medical school in Hermosa would be lucky to have you."

***

The celebration at the castle was getting underway, but Rajiv was not yet there. Instead, he was at the dock with Ajay, whose men were now carrying their belongings onto a cargo vessel that would shortly depart for Sundara. Everyone else had already said their goodbyes to Ajay, but Rajiv wanted to be there to see him off.

"I am sorry I must leave you, my Prince," Ajay said. "But I have been away too long as it is, and-"

"It is all right, Ajay," Rajiv cut in. "You have your duty. But I have one more request to make of you: that you take three messages back with you to Sundara. Please remember my words."

"Of course, your Highness," Ajay replied soberly.

"The first message," Rajiv said, "is for my mother. Please tell her that I am well, and that I am happy."

"I shall," Ajay answered.

"The second message is for my father. Tell him that we have secured an agreement with Arendelle to trade for our steel. And do not understate the part you played in our success, Ajay."

Ajay nodded, and Rajiv continued, "Tell him also that I shall be remaining here in Arendelle for some time, and that I do not know when I will return."

"Of course, my Prince," Ajay said dutifully.

"Now, Ajay," Rajiv went on, "the third message is especially important. Please try to remember every word of it."

"Certainly, your Highness."

"The third message is for you," Rajiv said, looking Ajay right in the eye. "You have been more of a father to me than our king ever was. I love you, and I shall miss you."

Ajay didn't speak. He just seized Rajiv in a crushing hug.

***

At the party, Elsa approached Anna, who was briefly alone as Kristoff chatted with some of his new fans. The notion of a commoner becoming a knight through merit alone seemed to excite a great many people.

"Hey there," Anna said, smiling. "Big day, huh?"

"Big week," Elsa replied. "For all of us."

"Yeah," Anna said, suddenly somber. Her eyes dropped to the floor as she added, "There are some things I'm…never going to forget."

"I know," Elsa said, putting her fingers under Anna's chin to lift the princess' gaze to her own. "We've both got a lot to process. But today is a day for looking forward.

"I once told you," Elsa went on, "that being Queen gave me bird's eye view of the kingdom. But now I know that there are a lot of things I never saw. I need to fix that."

"How?" Anna replied. "It's not like you could work harder than you already do."

"You're right," Elsa replied, "and I think that's the problem. I've been so worried about being a good queen—or not being seen as a bad one—that I've taken on responsibilities that I should be delegating to others. Especially," she added with a meaningful glance at Anna, "now that I know that there are people in this kingdom who can handle some of them better than I."

Anna smiled but had no opportunity to reply, as Kristoff, the Duke, Hildy, and Tilde were just then approaching. The Duke made an appropriately deep bow to the Queen, which Kristoff imitated awkwardly.

"Your Highness," Hildy said as she and Tilde curtsied, "we were wondering if you could whip it out for us."

"Excuse me?" Elsa replied, puzzled.

"I believe," the Duke said with a sigh, "my stepdaughter is asking to see your new sword."

Elsa drew the silver-handled weapon, holding it out pommel-first for the others to examine. It had a slim blade, its handle was wrapped in black leather, and its simple cross-guard was decorated in a pattern that resembled ice crystals. On one side, in the center of the guard, was set a single ice-blue sapphire.

"It's beautiful," Anna breathed.

"Beautiful _and_ functional," the Duke replied. "Before the ceremony, I advised her Majesty to take care not to remove Sir Kristoff's ears with it during his knighting."

"Thanks for that," Kristoff said.

Anna continued gazing at the sword as she said, with audible envy, "Perks of being Queen, I guess."

"It is the first sword to be made in Arendelle from Sundaran steel," the Duke noted. Then he reached somewhere behind him and retrieved a thin pine box that was just over three feet long.

"And this," he said, handing the box to Anna, "is the second such sword."

Anna opened the box and gasped. Inside was a sword like Elsa's, but instead of silver ice crystals, the guard was decorated in tiny golden leaves and vines. The handle was wrapped in brown leather instead of black, and where Elsa's sword bore a sapphire, this one was adorned with a small but lustrous ruby.

"Made by my most skilled swordsmith," the Duke said proudly. "He took his inspiration from your owl pendant."

"It's…it's…oh, thank you!" Anna cried.

"You are most welcome, your Highness," the Duke replied. Then, indicating the two swords, he added, "Those come with lessons, by the way."

"Hey, Rajiv is back," Kristoff interrupted, pointing.

Rajiv was standing near one of the many buffet tables, talking with the remaining princes and attendants; although Halfdan, Prince Varek, Popov, Prince Gormal, and Hamish had returned home, others had stayed for the ceremony. Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff went over to them.

"How much longer do you plan to remain in Arendelle, Prince Sefu?" Prince Javier was asking.

"A little while," the Mianyokan prince replied. "Prince Rajiv has kindly offered to teach me some of his relaxation techniques to help me with my fear of snakes."

Mofa, seemingly unable to help himself, added, "We are glad to stay for as long as that takes."

"And what of the boy, Tomas?" Dr. Montalvo asked, bowing respectfully as Elsa and Anna joined them. "I have not seen him since the invasion. Is he all right?"

"He's fine," Elsa replied. "I sent him home with the Dianisian fleet."

"Is- Is that safe?" Rajiv asked, his concern about the boy seeming to just overcome his wish not to undermine Elsa in front of her subjects.

"You should have heard Elsa talking to Admiral Stavros," Anna cut in. Imitating her sister's most commanding tone, she said, "'If any harm comes to the boy or his family, there will be reprisals. I'll see to it _personally_.' Then she clenched her fist and made it go all icy. It was awesome."

"Rajiv," Elsa said, not bothered by the vicarious boasting but not wanting to seem immodest, "it looks like you haven't visited the buffet yet. I had the royal chef make something in your honor."

They walked the few feet to the buffet, people moving for the Queen, and Elsa pointed at a particular dish with a yellowish sauce.

"Shrimp coconut curry," she said.

"In that case," Rajiv replied, smiling, "it would be the height of rudeness for me not to try it."

Rajiv accepted a small plate of the dish, as well as a fork, and returned to Elsa's side. He took a bite, his face taking on a puzzled expression. Then he began to laugh.

"What's funny?" Elsa asked.

"This…I am so sorry…this is the worst shrimp coconut curry I have ever had," the prince replied. Then, laughing harder, he added, "For one thing, I'm fairly certain that the curry is actually mustard."

"Oh, dear," Elsa said, starting to laugh, too. "Please don't blame the chef. He told me he didn't have the right ingredients, but I ordered him to do the best he could anyway. He nearly quit over it."

"Tell him," Rajiv said between guffaws, "that his professional reputation is intact. And that I deeply appreciate the effort to accommodate me."

Elsa turned to Kristoff, and her heart was warmed by the adoring looks that the newly minted knight was exchanging with Anna.

"If I may," Elsa said, "I'd like a word with you"—she turned to Rajiv—"and then with you."

"Of course, your Highness," Kristoff said, following Elsa out a side door into an empty hallway.

"Um," Kristoff said, "if this is about me and Anna, everything is-"

"It's not," Elsa said. "It's about you and me."

"Okay," Kristoff said, clearly uncertain about where this was going.

Elsa moved half a step closer and said, "When I was growing up, I just had the one sister. And then, for a long time, I didn't even have her."

Kristoff nodded, still looking puzzled.

"So...I never knew what it would be like to have a brother," she continued. Then, smiling, she said, "I think I do now."

Kristoff's eyes went a little misty, and his voice cracked as he replied, "I- I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything," Elsa replied. Then, opening her arms and wiggling her fingers, she said, "Just bring it in."

Kristoff stepped into her embrace and folded his arms around her as she leaned her head against his chest.

After several moments, Kristoff said, "Elsa?"

"Mmm?"

"It's starting to get weird."

She let go of him, chuckling. "I'll get better with practice. Now, I suppose you'd better get back to your fans. Would you send Rajiv this way?"

"Sure," Kristoff said. "Good night, your Majesty."

"Good night? What makes you think I'm not going back to the party?"

Kristoff smiled. "I may not be a love expert—or a love goddess—but I'm not stupid, either."

***

A minute later, Rajiv appeared in the corridor. Elsa glanced around to confirm that they were alone before she spoke.

"You know," she said, "that I'm grateful to you for saving my kingdom."

"I do know that," Rajiv replied, tapping his Northern Lights medal.

"I'm also grateful for your volunteering to stay and help with the new Fire Fleet," she continued.

"I am happy to do it."

"And I think your power is wondrous."

"As is yours," he replied.

"And you look very good in that suit," Elsa said with a wry smile.

"I appreciate this string of compliments," Rajiv said, "but-"

"What I'm trying to say," Elsa interrupted as she moved close to Rajiv, "is that none of these is the reason why…why I'd like you to come up to my bedchamber and…spend the night with me."

"Oh," Rajiv said, his eyebrows rising. Then, after a moment, he said, "Elsa…"

"Yes?"

"You are wise, and kind, and very beautiful. And you are among the few people in this world who I feel truly understand me."

"Thank you."

"All of those are the reasons why I am going to say yes."

***

At the party, Kristoff was just helping himself to the nicely spiked punch when a familiar voice spoke up behind him.

"So, I hear Elsa and Rajiv are an item now," Olaf said. "Talk about a steamy romance!"

Kristoff rolled his eyes.

"Get it?" Olaf said. "Because fire and ice make steam, so- Oh, yeah, no, never mind, you get it."

***

Hildy was a great lover of parties, but now and then, she needed a minute or two to chill out before returning to the fun. So she had just stepped outside for some air when Baron Herringholtz appeared beside her.

"Good evening, Viscountess Hildegard," the matchmaker said. "Might I have a word?"

"Okay," Hildy said, puzzled.

She looked around. Although there were some partiers and locals on the balconies and in the streets here and there, there was no one else in the immediate vicinity.

"I shall get right to the point," Herringholtz said. "Does anyone else besides you, your mother, and myself know who your true father is?"

Hildy paled.

"There- There's no way you could know that."

The Baron nodded. "True, I do not know his name. But I know his country of origin, and it is not Bohemia, as you have been known to claim." He lowered his voice. "It is Dianisia."

Hildy stared at him, for once struck silent.

"The brooch you wear," the Baron said, "in the abstract form of a nude man—I imagine everyone here thinks it is merely a provocative piece of jewelry. But when I first saw it, on the night of the welcome banquet, I recognized it, although I had to look at it for some time before I could recall where I had seen it before."

"I thought you were just staring at my boobs," Hildy retorted.

Herringholtz ignored the remark. "It was in a very old, very rare book about the ancient religions of Dianisia. More than a thousand years ago, pins such as yours were the hallmark of a Dianisian sect known as the Faithful of Eros. To wear such a pin near one's heart signified complete loyalty to the God of Love and his cause. This was known only to other members of the sect, of course, who had to keep their faith a secret from those determined to wipe out the last traces of the old religion.

"Unfailingly, the pins were passed down from parent to child, and those that could not be passed on were destroyed. So it struck me as very unlikely that you could have obtained one by any means other than inheritance.

"I do not know why you have kept your Dianisian heritage a secret for so long," Herringholtz continued, "but I dare say that this would be a particularly awkward time for it to be revealed. So, in exchange for my silence, I have one request."

Hildy had suspected from the moment the conversation began that Herringholtz had some vile motive. Mentally, she put even odds on whether he would demand money or…favors.

"Of course you do," Hildy said, her anger rising. "Tell me your price."

Herringholtz looked her in the eye and said, "Swear to me by your gods that you had no part in the Dianisian invasion of this kingdom."

Hildy blinked, surprised.

"I had nothing to do with it," she replied. Then, with a reverent tone that Anna would never have recognized in Hildy's voice, the viscountess added, "I swear by the gods."

Herringholtz looked at Hildy for a long moment. Then, taking a step back, he said, "Then I shall consider the matter closed. Good night, Viscountess."

"Good- Good night, Baron."

***

"So," said Rajiv, gazing at Elsa across the threshold of her bedroom door, "there is no right way to ask this but...have you done this before?"

"Um, no," Elsa replied. "You remember what I said about why I never learned to dance?"

"Yes, you explained that you- oh."

Elsa, glad not to have to explain further, asked, "What about you?"

"I have…limited experience."

"Hmm, I'm intrigued. A youthful romance?"

"No, I'm afraid. My father felt that a prince should understand...such things...by the time he is of age to marry, so he…arranged a sort of-"

"It's all right; you don't need to tell me the details."

"Thank you."

After a moment, Rajiv said, "I am struck by the thought that you have a terrible reason for being a virgin, and I have a terrible reason for not being one."

"True," Elsa replied. Then, drawing closer, she said, "But does any of that matter, right here and now?"

His eyes alight with both fondness and desire, Rajiv moved close to her until their bodies were a hairsbreadth apart.

"Not in the least," the man said, and they kissed.

***

It was well past three o'clock in the morning when the party finally wound down. Kristoff and Anna had quietly discussed his spending the night at the castle, but after many hours of partying, it was clear that they were both too tired for much more than a kiss goodnight, and Anna had to be up at a reasonable hour for the beginning of the trade conference.

"That's okay," Kristoff said. "The night's already half over, and I want the first night we spend together to be full-length. Maybe…Friday, my place?"

"Sounds good," Anna replied. "That way, there's a chance we might fit in an hour or two of sleep. _Might_."

"You're awesome in so many ways," Kristoff said.

Then, after a brief, sweet kiss, Kristoff said, "G'night, Princess."

Anna smiled. "G'night, Sir Kristoff."

"So not used to that yet."

END CHAPTER 20 


	21. Epilogue

Epilogue

Another day had passed. Kristoff had just arrived home, having completed his first day of training in the arts of knightly combat. He would be doing this for a few days each month in his capacity as an officer in Arendelle's new reserve forces.

Kristoff had always thought he was in good shape, but it seemed that there were a great many muscles he didn't know he had, because all of them were tired and achy now. He wondered how he would feel in a few weeks, when he'd be doing the same exercises and drills in the fifty-pound suit of armor that was currently being made for him.

At least he felt like he was truly earning the nice stipend that came with his service. And it cheered him to know that it wouldn't be long before he could settle the rest of his debts.

Kristoff lit a lantern so that he could get ready for bed, and he noticed something odd: In the middle of the rough wooden table that served as his kitchen counter and dining table, there was a small wooden box, which sat on top of a piece of paper.

He picked up the paper first. It was a note, written in Mama Bulda's characteristically atrocious block lettering.

My Baby

I want you to know that Im real proud of you. Not cuz they made you a knight but cuz you earned it.

Whats in the box is a present. But its not for you. Its to give to somebody else one of these days. Youll know when.

Love you boy.

Mama

As Kristoff opened the box, he saw that faint red light was emanating from inside it. It was a red gem, like the ones that some of the rock trolls liked to wear on necklaces and such. But this gem was very small, and it was set in a ring. A woman's ring.

Kristoff smiled.

***

Elsa and Anna put their stockinged feet up on the same ottoman in front of the fire, and each took a sip of her hot cider.

"So," Elsa asked, "how did today's session of the conference go?"

"Pretty well," Anna replied. "I think I'm on the verge of convincing the representative from Fraai to drop their import tariff on sulfur—since we've got so much production capacity for that these days—if we promise to buy at least ten percent of the armor and weapons we need from Fraaian manufacturers when we stock the new Royal Armory. I checked with the Duke and General Stark; they say the Fraaians make good stuff. "

"Well done," Elsa said. "Anna, I can't tell you how proud I am of you."

Anna smiled.

"Which has me wondering," the princess said. "After the conference is over, what shall I do next, my Queen?"

Elsa smiled back as she replied, "There's going to be a new marketplace opening in Oberton next week. I'd like you to go to the ribbon-cutting."

The smile ran off of Anna's face.

"Another fluff job?" she exclaimed. "After...everything? And Oberton is at least eight hours' ride from here! I'd have to-"

"My new intelligence network," Elsa interrupted, "is in its infancy, but it reports a rumor that there is an extortion ring operating in Oberton, and that the local earl is taking payments to turn a blind eye."

Elsa took a sip of cider, then continued, "I'd like you to look into it. You seem to have developed a talent for that sort of thing. And the ribbon-cutting will be an excellent cover."

"Wow," Anna replied. "I...I won't let you down."

"I don't think you could if you tried," Elsa replied. "Now, that's enough business. Let's talk about you and Kristoff."

"Sure. Right after we talk about you and Rajiv."

"Did I tell you he likes chocolate now?"

"Oooh, he really _is_ a keeper!" Anna exclaimed. She cleared her throat and added, "I mean, not that I want you to rush into anything."

"I don't plan to," Elsa replied. "But I'm looking forward to…everything."

Anna took another sip of her cider, her eyes seeming to focus on something far ahead of her.

"Me too," she said. "Me too."

***

Hildy raised her small lantern as she passed through the mouth of the cave. She picked her way over the loose rocks on the cave floor, crossing the forty feet to the rear of the cave, where a large, circular, lidded wooden tub sat with a few heavy stones on top of it. The weight of the rocks was necessary to make the contents of the tub—curds that had been separated from whey and packed into the tub months earlier—solidify into a firm wheel of cheese.

So prominently did the aging wheel of cheese stand out in the chamber-like rear of the cave that one would be unlikely to notice that the cave did not actually end there; rather, there was a small passage that went a few feet back and then turned and went out of sight. Hildy followed this passage a good twenty-five feet to its end, where there stood a small statue—essentially a larger version of the figure on Hildy's pin, but in stone instead of bronze.

Behind the statue stood a man. He appeared to be only a few years older than Hildy, olive-complected, with shining black hair and brown eyes flecked with gold. He was devastatingly handsome.

"I understand you've been calling yourself the Love Goddess," the man said.

"I think it's catching on," Hildy replied. Then, inclining her head slightly, she added, "I hope it doesn't offend you."

"Not at all. If anything, it shows that you have taken to heart my advice about hiding in plain sight."

"I wish I could do it the way you do," Hildy replied. "The ability to turn invisible at will would be awfully useful. Not to mention being able to travel between here and Sundara in the blink of an eye."

"It is simply my good fortune that I still have a few worshippers in Sundara's capitol who maintain my shrine there. They know me by another name, of course, but the Faithful are the Faithful, wherever they are.

"What is more, your skill in the art of forgery has been of greater value in this effort than my vestigial powers. I merely delivered to the Sundaran king and queen the masterful false invitation that you created. And that letter you forged in Anna's mother's hand was not only entirely convincing but a brilliant stratagem. You knew just what sort of push Anna would need to overcome her personal barriers and confront Kristoff about his."

"Thank you," Hildy replied humbly.

"But what of the ring and note you left at Kristoff's cottage?"

"Those were for real," Hildy said. "I just delivered them for Bulda. We've known each other almost since Mother brought me to Arendelle. She's a good friend, and a useful ally."

The man nodded, clearly pleased.

"You have done many good things in these past days, Hildegard. All without the need for a waning god's feeble magic.

"That said," he added, "do not give up hope that you might gain powers of your own. You are only twenty years old; on Olympus, you would be considered barely out of infancy."

Hildy nodded but said nothing.

"Child, I may be a god, but I am neither omniscient nor infallible. You would do me no disrespect by asking the question that is clearly on your mind."

"It's just," Hildy began, "even if you discount all the unpredictable stuff we had to deal with, this was a lot of work just to get a few people to fall in love."

He smiled. "Indeed. But the banner that flies highest is most easily followed. When the people of Arendelle see love in the eyes of those whom they most respect and admire, they may find the courage to pursue it for themselves."

Hildy returned his smile. "And with any luck, they won't have to survive a full-scale invasion to do it."

"At least," the man said, "the invasion afforded us the opportunity to reunite Prince Hjalmar with his beloved. Although I must say that riding invisibly on his back to slow him down and separate him from the other princes was not the most dignified moment of my divine life."

Shaking his head, the man continued, "But that success seems a poor trade for so much grief. It saddens me that the people who once revered me now turn to violence as the first solution to their problems. I do not know whether Dianisia will ever find its way back to me.

"But Arendelle…the power of love has saved this kingdom twice over. If I am to have my renaissance anywhere, it will be here."

Inclining his head almost reverently, the man added, "I believe in these people, Hildegard. Perhaps, in time, they could come to believe in me."

"I'll do everything I can to make that happen," Hildy said.

"I know you will, child. I could not ask for a better representative in the mortal world than you."

The man stepped closer to Hildy.

"Now," he said cheerfully, "I think that's enough business for tonight. How about a hug?"

Hildy wrapped her arms around the man. Then she closed her eyes and smiled as he enfolded her in his embrace.

"I love you, child," the man whispered.

Holding him a little tighter, Hildy replied, "I love you, Dad."

THE END

\- - -

I would like to thank my good friend Eh Steve for his feedback on every last chapter of this tale. And I thank you for sticking with it to the end. 


	22. Author's Notes

**Author's notes**

—The initial inspiration for this story came from two sources. The first, obviously, was the movie _Frozen_ itself, which I watched out of curiosity in January 2015 when my cable company had a weekend of free access to the premium channels. I found the movie charming, visually impressive, and most importantly, unpredictable; I loved the way that it subverted some of the standard Disney-movie tropes to surprise you.

The second source of inspiration, oddly, was a comment made by somebody on Tumblr about the lack of people of color in the movie. The comment reeked of political correctness, but it got me thinking about the various parts of the world that could be represented in this story—hence the various places of origin of the seven foreign princes.

—The name Rajiv means "lotus flower." It also contains the word "raj," meaning "king."

—"Hjalmar" is an Old Norse name meaning "helmeted warrior."

Regarding the various kingdoms mentioned in the story:

— "Sundara" and "Hermosa" mean "beautiful" in Hindi and Spanish, respectively. Sundara is based very loosely on Kerala, India's southernmost state.

— "Dianisia" means "blessed islands" in Greek.

— "Mianyoka" means "a hundred snakes" in Swahili.

— "Lainn" is a name I pulled out of the air because it sounded Gaelic, but it turns out that in Scottish Gaelic it means "of the sword."

— "Nordland" was simply meant to sound like some Scandinavian word for "north land." Nordland is a fantasy stand-in for Sweden in the way that Arendelle is for Norway.

— "Rekya" means nothing, to my knowledge; I just chose it because it sounded kind of Slavic. I also realized that I had originally spelled it "Rekja" in chapter 2; I went back and changed it to "Rekya," which is the more phonetically logical spelling.

The following notes are about specific chapters of the story. **Warning** : Spoilers!

Chapter 3: The Love Goddess

—On , Hildy (introduced in this chapter) is cited as an example of the "All Women Are Lustful" trope ( /Main/AllWomenAreLustful).

Chapter 4: The Snowman and the Falcon

—This chapter's title is a play on the title of the 1985 spy movie _The Falcon and the Snowman_.

Chapter 7: The Trader

—In this chapter, Kristoff mentions to Ajay that, on the fateful day of Elsa's coronation, people kept bursting into song for no obvious reason; when Kristoff asks whether this ever happens where Ajay is from, the Sundaran sailor replies, "My boy, you have no idea." This is meant as a reference to the popularity of movie musicals in India.

—Shortly after _Frozen_ was released in theaters, some homophobic nutjobs accused Disney of promoting "the gay agenda" in the movie because of the scene in which Oaken waves at several people—including an adult man—in the sauna, shouting, "Yoo hoo! Hi family!" (Never mind that Oaken never claims them as HIS family, or that there appears to be an adult woman in the sauna next to the man.) I rather liked the idea of Oaken having a husband and a bunch of adopted kids, so that's how I wrote him. Thanks, nutjobs!

Chapter 11: The Accountants

—It is a complete coincidence that the chapter titled "The Accountants" is chapter 11 (the law that American corporations often use to file for bankruptcy).

—On , Anna's bumping into the coffer that is supposedly filled with gold coins and almost knocking it over—thereby deducing that it can't actually be full of gold—is mentioned as a subversion of the "Hollywood Density" trope ( /Main/HollywoodDensity), in which gold and other dense substances are often portrayed as being much lighter than they are in real life.

—The horse-riding accident that Elsa and Anna's mother, Queen Iduna, describes in her letter to the Duke comes from my own experience. While on a ranch owned by an amateur rodeo rider, I was riding one of his retired rodeo horses in the ring, and when I nudged the horse to accelerate from a walk to a trot, it broke straight into a gallop instead and went charging toward the fence on the other side of the ring. I pulled back on the reins, the horse stopped abruptly, and I kept going and landed on the ground. Thankfully, the dirt in the ring was nice and soft (by design, I'm sure).

—The quote "Good judgement comes from experience, and experience mostly comes from bad judgement" has been variously attributed to Rita Mae Brown, Will Rogers, Bob Packwood, and the Sufi Mullah Nasruddin, among others.

Chapter 12: The Goatherd

—Tomas' name is a nod to Tom Canty, the impoverished boy who switches places with a lookalike prince in Mark Twain's _The Prince and the Pauper_.

Chapter 13: The Reindeer

—Admiral Ostergard's name was inspired by the name of Admiral Westergard, a character that appeared in an early draft of the script for _Frozen_. Westergard was written as Anna's love interest but later morphed into the charming but sinister Prince Hans when the decision was made to make Elsa a sympathetic character instead of the villain. _Frozen_ scriptwriter Jennifer Lee has said that (unofficially) Westergard remained Prince Hans' last name, so I didn't want to use that name for the admiral in this story. Instead, I exchanged "West" for "Ost"—the Norwegian word for "East."

—White irises are not poisonous. I completely made that up.

Chapter 14: The Trolls

—Anna's growing powers of observation are a nod to the TV series _Veronica Mars_ , whose mystery-solving title character was played by Kristen Bell, the voice of Anna.

Chapter 15: The Duke

—Greek fire was developed in the 7th century AD and was used as a weapon of war by the Byzantine Empire for three centuries. Thereafter, the formula was lost (although Leonardo da Vinci claimed to know it).

Chapter 16: The Saboteur

—The various fire-related puns Olaf makes to Tomas in this chapter were taken from a comment posted on Hentai Foundry by ThatGuyWithTheFace in response to the ending of chapter 9 (in which Rajiv bursts into flames). Because the comment was so spoilerrific, I asked him to take the comment down, which he kindly did. But I am happy to provide his full list of puns here:

Guess someone's a little hot under the collar.

Boy that Rajiv sure is a hot head.

Does this mean that Rajiv has a hot temper?

Things are heating up.

Nothing like a heated argument.

No wonder Rajiv has no interest in Elsa, he's flaming.

Everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.

Sweet only two more elementals and then they can summon Captain Planet.

Chapter 20: The Ice-Man

—Throughout the story, I made an effort to make Baron Herringholtz alternately sympathetic and suspicious. In the end, though, the needle-nosed Herringholtz is confirmed to be a good guy, because I wanted to subvert the "Attractive people are good, ugly people are evil" trope in the same way that _Frozen_ itself does.

—Baron Herringholtz wears a red jacket throughout the story because he is, ultimately, a red herring.

Epilogue

—This is the first story that I've ever concluded with the words "THE END." Because Disney.


End file.
